We're in the middle of school right now. This week's Greek root word is PHOBOS (fear). So we're alphabetizing a bunch of phobias, and I ask Justin, "What do you think claustrophobia means?" In all seriousness, he replied, "Um....fear of Christmas?"

Oh how I love teaching my kids!

Mmmmmm...tonight's dinner found us serving up an absolute favorite for our family.  It's creamy, rich, and pretty much awesome. It's a truly awesome fall/winter soup. So here it is!

Delicious Ham and Potato Soup

3 1/2 c. peeled and diced potatoes
1/3 c. diced celery
1/3 c. finely chopped onion
3/4 c. diced cooked ham
3 1/4 c. water
2 T. chicken bouillon granules
1/2 t. salt, or to taste
1 t. ground white or black pepper, or to taste
5 T. butter
5 T. flour
2 c. milk

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 10-15 minutes. Stir in the chicken bouillon, salt and pepper.

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

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

(For a little extra oomph to your soup, top with cheddar cheese)

YESSSSSS!!!! It's Soup Weather again!  I truly do love the fall: changing colors of the leaves, the crispness of the air, the smells of spices and apples,  and most of all -- soup!!!  Over the last few years, a typical fall or winter evening will find us indulging at dinnertime with one of our growing number of favorite soup recipes.  It's fast, easy, a lot of times healthy, and sometimes just deliciously rich and indulgent. Since I made one of my favorite fast and easy soups tonight, I thought I'd graciously share it with you! Just in case you're needing some inspiration for soup weather!  I may try to include more soup recipes as we go through the fall and winter. And feel free to pass along your ideas as well! I'm a sucker for a quick and easy soup recipe! Especially if I have all the ingredients easily on hand.

SO here's TODAY'S soup recipe, with credit going to my friend Martha who introduced me to it!

Wild Rice and Broccoli Soup

In saucepan, combine:
5 c. water
1 wild rice soup mix (both the rice and the seasoning packet)
(hint: I get the rice and vermicelli mix at Aldi for some ridiculous price of under $1, but I did just have this with a wild rice soup mix - the tastes are completely different, but both WONDERFUL!)

Bring to a boil, then cover and simmer for 10 minutes.

Add to soup:
10 oz. frozen broccoli, thawed (I prefer frozen chopped broccoli as it is easier for little ones to chew up)
1-2 carrots, shredded (or chopped up really fine with Pampered Chef food chopper for ease of time)
2 t. dried minced onion

Cover and cook for 5 minutes.

Add:
1 can cream of chicken soup (or cream of mushroom)
8 oz. cream cheese

Stir until blended
Optional: Once blended and heated through consider adding toasted sliced almonds for an extra crunch
OR add a can of sliced mushrooms for a meatier taste.

One thing I try to do through the fall and winter is to always keep on hand the basics for about 3-4 soup recipes.  I will have butter, cream cheese, carrots (especially packs of baby carrots for extra ease of preparation....no peeling involved!), celery, potatoes, frozen veggies, cans of diced tomatoes for stews or beef based soups, some cans of Chunky Veg-All to make quick work for a chicken or beef soup (if you use Veg-All, cut down on the salt you include) rice, canned and dry beans, lentils, noodles.......

Having at least MOST of these always on hand makes for a quick dinner prep. Add in some cheese and crackers, or cornbread, or some buttered french bread, and voila! The meal is done!  Hope you enjoyed this soup recipe! Hopefully I'll be able to post some more in the near future.  With the cooler weather, you can be sure that I will be MAKING more soup very soon!