Cream Cheese and Chive Potato Soup

I eat a lot of soup!  Soup in cartons, soup in cans, I've even eaten that strange dehydrated soup in the little foil packets!  I know, I am ashamed to admit that last one.  
 

I don't know why I buy soup when it's so easy to make.  Anything you have to hand can be made into soup.  I am pretty sure that's how that posh soup in the cardboard carton comes up with their 'seasonal' varieties.  You and I would say we are using up the odds and ends in the fridge.  They call it product development.  


To prove my point, I am going to share with you a little recipe I 'developed' for lunch today.  I am going to call it Cream Cheese and Chive Potato Soup.  Here are the ingredients I used:

3 medium potatoes - peeled and sliced into small-ish pieces
1 onion - diced
1 fat clove of garlic - slightly crushed
1 teaspoon dried mixed herbs
1 stock cube - real stock would be great if you have it
2 or 3 Tablespoons cream cheese
Fresh chives - finely chopped

Place the potatoes, garlic, onions, mixed herbs and stock cube in a large sauce pan. Add enough cold water to cover the vegetables.  Cook over a medium heat until the potatoes are very soft and begin to break down.  It usually takes about 15 or 20  minutes.

Remove the pan from the heat and puree the soup until it is smooth.  I find my stick blender is perfect for this job.   Add a tablespoon or two of cream cheese and give the soup another whizz.  If the soup is too thick, add a splash of milk.    Add a spoonful more of cream cheese if you want to make the soup richer.  Remember, with soup there aren't any rules you 'develop' the recipe you like.

Taste the soup and adjust the seasoning...that means add salt and pepper if it needs it.  


Ladle the soup into a bowl or a BIG mug.  Sprinkle chopped chives over the top of the soup and add any other garnish you like.   I think some crisp bacon bits or grated cheddar cheese would be good.  Serve with crusty bread and good butter.  

There you have it, Cream Cheese and Chive Potato Soup, in about the same amount of time it would take to re-hydrate one of those packet soups.  Just one of our 'seasonal' soups developed especially for Autumn lunches.  Enjoy!

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