Creamy Potato Soup

Several potato soup recipes have come across my path in the past few months, and they each contained cream cheese.  Not something I would have ever thought to put into soup, but I figured I would give it a try.  So, yesterday I made up my own version.  I love that this soup doesn't require any milk!  Milk is so expensive, and I've tried to cut back on it in our family over the past few weeks, but I still feel like we go through it super fast.  A lot of creamy soups call for milk, but this one turned out great without it and I'm thrilled!

Another thing I like about this soup is that I didn't peel the potatoes.  And, no, they weren't red potatoes.  All they needed was a good scrubbing, and they were good to go in the pot!  Did you know that most of the nutrients in a potato are found between the skin and the actual potato?  The very part we normally discard!  So, not only are you getting a yummy bowl of soup with this recipe, you're also benefiting from the natural nutrients of a potato.

Serve this with a warm, buttered slice of homemade bread and your tummy will be happy.

Creamy Potato Soup


3 tablespoons margarine, or butter
1/2 cup diced onion
3 tablespoons flour
6 cups chicken broth
2.5 lbs. white potatoes, scrubbed and chopped {use less if you want more cream than chunk to your soup}
4 oz. cream cheese, cut into cubes
salt and pepper to taste
1 teaspoon dried marjoram
shredded cheddar cheese, optional
cooked diced bacon, optional

In a large pot, melt butter.  Add diced onions and cook over medium-high heat until onion is tender, about 5 minutes.  Stir in flour until smooth.  Add chicken broth and stir for about 10 minutes.  The soup won't thicken a ton, but it will thicken slightly.  Carefully dump in the potatoes and cook until potatoes are fork tender, about 20 minutes, on medium-low heat.  Add marjoram, and salt and pepper to taste.  Stir in the cream cheese and continue stirring until heated through.  Garnish bowls of soup with shredded cheese and bacon.  {Chives would also be delicious}

Linking to:

Sage and Sour Cream Pork Chops

The other night I told Bradley we were having pork chops for dinner, and wanted some input on how to make them.  After a few moments, he said, "Oh, my mom used to make these sage, cream pork chops.  Could you make those?"  So, I gave my mother-in-law a call and made this yummy recipe.  It's perfect served over rice or egg noodles, whichever you prefer or happen to have on hand.  A wonderful comfort food.

Sage and Sour Cream Pork Chops
Printable Version

3 boneless pork chops
3/4 teaspoon rubbed sage
3/4 teaspoon salt
freshly ground pepper
oil
1 medium onion, thinly sliced
1 cup beef broth
1/2 - 3/4 cup sour cream
1 tablespoon flour

In a small bowl, combine sage, salt and pepper.  Rub into both sides of each pork chop.

Heat about 2 tablespoons of vegetable oil in a large skillet.  Place pork chops in skillet and cook on each side, just until slightly browned.  Remove excess oil from pan.

Return pork chops to pan, along with onion and broth.  Cover and cook on low heat for 30 minutes, or until pork chops are cooked through.

 Combine flour and sour cream, and add to mixture in pan, stirring to combine.

Simmer, do not cook on a higher heat than this, for 10 minutes to heat the cream.  If you cook it on a higher heat setting, the sour cream will separate from the broth and not produce the appropriate sauce.

Serve pork chops with sauce, over rice or egg noodles.

source: my mother-in-law