Dinner # 5 of the 12 Dinner of Christmas -- Crock Pot Baked Potato Soup

Crock Pot Baked Potato Soup

With less than 2 weeks until Christmas, life can get hectic around the house. Being smack dab in the middle of the holiday season, No Thank You Boy thinks homework should be optional. Every night we have a discussion on why he has to do homework, why his teachers are so mean to even give homework, and his general lack of enthusiasm toward homework in general. I bought him a new 24-pack of shiny yellow #2 pencils yesterday. Hopefully they will bolster his cranial thought process until the much anticipated 2 week break from school. If all it took was a $.94 package of pencils to get him excited about school, I would be getting off easy.

For Dinner # 5 of the 12 Dinners of Christmas, I dusted off the trusty crock pot. Baked Potato Soup is a ridiculously easy recipe. I am embarrassed to post it. Not really because on a cold winter night, a bowl of this soup along with a BLT sandwich hits the spot. I treat this soup like a baked potato and offer a variety of toppings: crumbled bacon, chunks of ham, cut up kielbasa, shredded cheddar cheese, corn niblets, petite peas, chopped scallions, and sour cream are just of few ingredients that could top your bowl of soup.

After a week of business travel crisscrossing the United States, The Husband will be kissing my feet when he sees 2 quarts of Baked Potato Soup in the refrigerator.

Crock Pot Baked Potato Soup

makes 2 1/2 quarts

6 large potatoes, peeled and diced - I used Yukon, russet, & red potatoes
1 large onion, chopped
5 cups of chicken stock or use vegetable stock to make this soup vegetarian
1 (15-ounce) can evaporated milk
1/4 cup butter
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper

toppings - crumbled bacon, chunks of ham, cut up kielbasa, shredded cheddar cheese, corn niblets, petite peas, chopped scallions, and sour cream

extra chicken or vegetable stock to thin soup

Place potatoes, onions, and stock in a crock pot. Cook on low for 9 hours. After the cooking time, mash potatoes with a potato masher and add evaporated milk and butter. Stir to combine. Season with salt and pepper.

To serve, ladle soup into bowls and top as desired.

Note: After the soup is refrigerated, it can become quite thick. Keep some extra stock on hand to thin out soup if you so choose.