My Winter Staple

I have this friend...

This friend is a loyal blogger...

This friend is a wonderful person...

This friend hands down makes the most wonderful recipes and blogs them, daily and shares all of her wonderful recipes with her readers...

I want to cook wonderful things like she does, and I want to try almost every recipe she has ever posted...

I am pretty sure she should cook for money, because I am certain she would dominate the world and make a killing!

I think my friend Jaime may be a secret chef... :)

I am going to jump on Jaime's train and post one of my most favorite Winter Time soups to share with my friends. To me, there is nothing better than a hot soup on a cold and snowy day. I found this recipe back in 2006, when I was still super new to my current job and was bored out of my skull one day. I spent a few days (cough, cough - weeks!) bored and expanded my cookbook with recipes I found online during the day.

There are a few things about this recipe that I LOVE:

• It is even better as left overs the next day. It is even more thick and creamy than it was the day before!
  
• You can cut down calories by using low cal/low fat ingredients and it still tastes identical.
  
• If you like crackers, I suggest plain goldfish... they are my favorite!
  
• I hate onions, but the original recipe calls for 1 large one... you can use it if you want! (Sick!)
  

I don't have a picture of my soup as my dear friend is so wonderful at doing, but that is only because I made this on Sunday evening and it is gone now and I am just now getting around to blog about it!

Cheesy Ham 'N' Potato Soup

• 2 cups cubed potatoes
• 1-1/2 cups water
• 1-1/2 cups cubed fully cooked ham
• 3 tablespoons butter
• 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 1/4 teaspoon pepper
• 3 cups milk
• 1-1/2 cups (6 ounces) finely shredded cheddar cheese

Directions

• In a saucepan, bring potatoes and water to a boil. Cover and cook for 10-15 minutes or until tender. Drain, reserving 1 cup cooking liquid; set potatoes and liquid aside.
• In a large saucepan, saute ham in butter. Stir in the flour and pepper until smooth; gradually add milk and reserved cooking liquid. Bring to a boil; cook and stir for 2 minutes or until thickened. Reduce heat to low. Add the cheese, and reserved potatoes; cook and stir until cheese is melted and soup is heated through. Yield: 7 servings.

I'm drooling all over again thinking about it! I can only hope that you enjoy it as much as I do on a cold snowy day!