I am always in the lookout for a simple soup recipe that is delicious, and preferably has both vegetables and meat in it. This way I can just add a salad or some sort of rolls or bread to go with it. This is actually a recipe that I have saved up for a while now. For time-saving tips, you can leave the skin on as long as you scrub them well before cutting. Red actually peeled the potatoes, although I wouldn’t have minded if he had left the skin on. I also did not have any beef  or chicken bouillon. Instead, I used low-sodium canned vegetable broth and it was still wonderful. I also used low-fat milk and couldn’t tell the difference.  This soup is very delicious, creamy, and flavorful–and my fave part of all, you can definitely tweak the ingredients as you wish. I am sure that you can use frozen potatoes or onions to save you time in chopping some of the vegetables. This recipe was a favorite at our house, and we will make again.

Adapted from Allrecipes

Ingredients
3 1/2 cups peeled and diced potatoes
1/3 cup diced celery
1/3 cup finely chopped onion
3/4 cup diced cooked ham
3 1/4 cups water
2 tablespoons chicken bouillon granules
1/2 teaspoon salt, or to taste
1 teaspoon ground white or black pepper, or to taste
5 tablespoons butter
5 tablespoons all-purpose flour

2 cups milk

Directions
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 to 15 minutes. Stir in the chicken bouillon, salt and pepper.

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

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

Yield: 8 servings