Potato Soup

We love potato soup over here...we specifically love baked potato soup from "Charleston's Restaurant" and I have made several attempts trying to find a recipe that is close! Well, I've found it....I'm not sure if its Charleston's exact recipe, but I found it by googling "Charleston's potato soup"! :-)

Owen's take on this was pretty positive. I didn't offer it to him initially, but he wanted to see what was in my bowl and I convinced him to take a taste. His comment was, "Mmmm...that's good, mom"! Doesn't get much better than that! It's unlikely that he would ever sit down and JUST eat potato soup, but he took several GOOD toddler sized spoonfuls. We'll keep working on it :-)
I'll give it three out of five tater tots, because its not a super kid friendly meal, but it IS tasty enough for my kiddo to come back for more!

1 1/2 cans chicken broth
1/2 cup water
1 tablespoon minced onion
1/8 teaspoon oregano
1/8 teaspoon parsley
5 tablespoons butter, melted
5 tablespoons flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
2 cups half and half
4 cups cubed potatoes with or without skins
GARNISHMENTS:
sliced green onions
crisp cooked bacon bits
cheddar cheese

In large pan, mix chicken broth, water, minced onions, oregano, and parsley. Bring to a boil; simmer 5 minutes.

Add melted butter, stir in flour slowly, and add salt and pepper. Stir in half and half; cook until bubbly.

Add potatoes. Cook until done over low to medium heat, stirring occasionally. If cooked too fast, the soup will burn before potatoes cook thoroughly.

Garnish each bowl with the chopped onion, crisp cooked bacon, and grated cheese


* I used whipping cream instead of half and half. Let's be honest. Its just better .
** My biggest struggle with potato soup is getting the flour chunks out...I've found that you just have to stir it constantly..and I mean constantly....once you add it in and until you add the potatoes.
*** This really isn't a hard process...I came home from church and whipped this up and was ready to eat in about 40 minutes.
****Grated Cheese and bacon for toppings complete this soup!