Wow – was it cold today or what?? Seriously icy cold winds that would not let up made it unbearably chilly today. I don’t normally cook dinner on Mondays because M is at school, but today was perfect soup weather. This is one of my family’s favorite soups – it’s creamy but not too heavy. I always double or triple the amounts given at Allrecipes.com because it’s that good! Thanks for reading, enjoy!

Ham and Potato Soup – adapted from Allrecipes.com

* = my modifications

• 3 1/2 cups peeled and diced potatoes (*2 pounds)
• 1/3 cup diced celery (*5 stalks)
• 1/3 cup finely chopped onion (*one whole small onion)
• 3/4 cup diced cooked ham (*a little over 1 pound)
• 3 1/4 cups water (*4 cups chicken broth)
• 2 tablespoons chicken bouillon granules (*I omitted this)
• 1/2 teaspoon salt, or to taste (*I omitted this)
• 1 teaspoon ground white or black pepper, or to taste
• 5 tablespoons butter (*11 tbsp)
• 5 tablespoons all-purpose flour (*11 tbsp)
• 2 cups milk (*three cups)

Directions –

1. Combine the potatoes, celery, onion, ham and water in a stockpot. Bring to a boil, then cook over medium heat until potatoes are tender, about 10 to 15 minutes. Stir in the chicken bouillon, salt and pepper.

2. In a separate saucepan, melt butter over medium-low heat. Whisk in flour with a fork, and cook, stirring constantly until thick, about 1 minute. Slowly stir in milk as not to allow lumps to form until all of the milk has been added. Continue stirring over medium-low heat until thick, 4 to 5 minutes.

3. Stir the milk mixture into the stockpot, and cook soup until heated through. Serve immediately.