Frugal Menu Mamas

I think my quest is over! I have not found the EXACT recipe I was looking for but this is sooooooo close!  It was delicious.  I loved that it cooked in the slow cooker.  However, it took me forever to chop all the celery and carrots and onions and to peel 5 pounds of potatoes.  I had celery and carrots left over, so I am going to chop them now and freeze them in the amounts the recipe calls for.  Then next time, I’ll just pull them out of the freezer all ready to go.  That’s right, I said next time because I will be making this again.  My husband, sister, and I all loved it!  The texture was just right and the flavor was fantastic.  My husband didn’t even mind the carrots and celery that he usually doesn’t like and I didn’t even mind the onions.  So, I suggest you check it out and try it!  I don’t know if it freezes well, so I took a little of it and filled a quart size Ziploc and froze it.  We’ll see in a week or so how it looks and tastes. 

I hope you enjoy this as much as I do!  And thanks for joining me on this quest that is now over. 

Creamy Slow Cooker Potato Soup

Yep, its Baked Potato Soup again.  Actually, this one is called Loaded Baked Potato Soup.  If you are looking for other potato soup recipes I’ve tried here is the link.

This one is definitely in the #1 position at this point.  It definitely had the right consistency.  It was thick and that was great.  That probably is because of the roux made with butter, flour, and milk.  The only thing was that it was NOT PRETTY!  That is why there is no photo, you might not try it if you saw my photo.  :)  Also, it needs a little less onion (in my non-onion eating opinion) and more salty flavor.  I did use reduced sodium chicken broth, perhaps that was not a good idea. 

I’m not a big fan of my own rating system, so I’ll just give you the bottom line.  This one is close, really close to what I am looking for.  The kids still did not like it.  It took longer to make than I expected. 

Here is the link for you:  Loaded Baked Potato Soup

I also made Cheddar Bay Biscuits the night I made the soup.  They were okay.  This is the second recipe I have tried for this and it still doesn’t compare to Red Lobster. 

More soon!

Though you haven’t seen much of me lately, I am still working on my quest.  Oh, why does the best potato soup recipe elude me?  I have tasted it at two restaurants…Garfields’ in WV and Crispers’ in FL.  It is creamy and thick, salty and starchy, with chunks of potato and carrot and the top is sprinkled with cheese and bacon.   Well, I never did propose that it was healthy okay?  If I could just find the perfect recipe, then potato soup would be a big winter comfort food for me.  Plus, potatoes are cheap, er I mean, frugal.   Anyone reading able to get me the recipe from Garfields’ or Crispers’? I would be forever indebted to you.

Moving right along…Remember I tried one recipe already that my sister loves.  It was tasty, but not what I was looking for.  So, today I will introduce you to the recipe we tried last week.  We tried Potato Bacon Chowder…and I forgot to take a photo….story of my life!  The soup was pretty good.  It wasn’t thick, so I mashed up some of the potatoes, but I still couldn’t get it thick.  I eliminated the celery since we really don’t like it and I must say, the bacon in this recipe really makes it great.  I did feel weird however, pouring bacon grease into the soup!

Here are our ratings:

Let’s put them on a scale of 1-10 (1 is yuck, 10 is I FOUND THE PERFECT RECIPE!)

NUMBER OF INGREDIENTS:  8

EASY TO MAKE:  8

TASTE:  8

# of family members (out of 4) who liked it:  2

I found the recipe on AllRecipes.com.  Surely, you have heard of All Recipes already, right?  If not, check it out!  It is a great site to search for recipes by ingredient or to submit your own.  Users rate the recipes and can leave comments on how they altered the recipe.  There are also email newsletters you can subscribe to, which I do and I enjoy them.  The lastest one I received was full of time saving recipe links like make ahead recipes and slow cooker recipes.  You can even create your own “recipe box” and save recipes to try.

Let me know what you think, if you have tried any of the potato soup recipes I mentioned! Here is the link to the Potato Bacon Chowder.

Have a great week!  See you soon!

Remember my quest?  Well, last week we tried our first in a long line of potato soup recipes.

This first recipe is from my sister.  She picked it up a long time ago from someone.  She loves it.

Here is our verdict:

Let’s put them on a scale of 1-10 (1 is yuck, 10 is I FOUND THE PERFECT RECIPE!)

NUMBER OF INGREDIENTS:  9

EASY TO MAKE:  9

TASTE:  7

# of family members (out of 4) who liked it:  2

The Verdict: This was easy to make!  The hardest part was peeling and dicing potatoes.  It tasted pretty good to me.  The kids did not like it (not surprised), but my husband did like it.  But this is not the recipe I am looking for.  The one I am looking for is saltier and a little heartier.  Thanks Robin for the recipe!  I would probably make it again, but it is not the perfect one for me. 

Robin’s Potato Soup

8 potatoes
1 medium onion
1 can cream of chicken soup
2 cups milk
1 cup shredded Velveeta Cheese (4 oz of a block, but for cheese lovers I like to do 8 oz of a block or 2 cups shredded)
8 oz sour cream

Peel and dice potatoes and onion. Boil in water (covered) until done. Drain most of water. Add soup and milk. Stir in cheese and keep over low heat until cheese is melted. Add sour cream just before serving. Salt and pepper to taste.

Also, great toppers include: bacon crumbles, extra cheese, extra sour cream, chives…. or anything you might put on a baked potato.

Freezes ok but better fresh.

Do you ever have a food/meal that you LOVE to get when you eat out and wish you could duplicate it at home?  I do!  Or just a meal that you’ve had before but you know you could find a better recipe for it?  I do!  So, I would like to start a new bi-monthly series on my quest for some of these types of recipes.

The first quest…potato soup.  Now I have tried some good recipes like 3 Cheese Potato Soup and Easy Baked Potato Soup.  However, I still have not found a recipe for a potato soup that I crave!  I have tasted that soup that I crave in two locations…#1-Garfields Restaurant in WV and #2-last week at Crispers restaurant in FL.  I have to figure out how to make that soup!  I am craving some right now as I type this!

So, I have 2 new potato soup recipes lined up to try.  I will make them, taste them, photograph them (hopefully), and rate them for you.  But if you have a FANTASTIC recipe for potato soup, please send it to me at chadsjoy at gmail dot com.  I will then try it and credit you with the deliciousness!

So, I’m changing my menu plan for this week and on Saturday I will be trying one of the new potato soup recipes.  And then next week, you will get the verdict on the first recipe I try. 

Also, if you are looking for delicious restaurant knock-offs, try Top Secret Recipes (you do have to pay for some of them).