All in the pot simple potato soup

Meals that can be made all in one pot are some of my favorite go-to recipes. Chili, stew, soup...all fantastic one pot wonders. One of the best things about these dishes for me is that they hardly require a recipe at all. They are so versatile. I love when I find a recipe that sounds tasty and I can still make it even if I don't have all of the exact same ingredients on hand. 

It was miserably rainy and cold in Chicagoland today, so we (my fiance, Peter, and I) were definitely in the mood for an all-in-the-pot kind of meal. We were eating at his apartment and he had plenty of potatoes on hand, so potato soup it was! I wouldn't say that this soup was one of the best we've ever made, but it was tasty and makes a good skeleton for a potato soup that you can easily personalize depending on what you have on hand. Here's our version from tonight.

All in the pot simple potato soup:

Heat 2 tsp. vegetable or olive oil in a large Dutch oven over medium heat. Dice 1/2 of a large sweet onion and 3 celery stalks. (If you like, you could easily add a diced carrot or two here.) Add these to the Dutch oven. Cook for 2 to 3 minutes and then add 1 clove minced garlic. Cook for 2 to 3 more minutes or until the onions and celery are translucent and softened. 

Add 4 cups chicken stock to the pot. (Cook's notes: We actually used 6 cups of chicken stock made from chicken bouillion cubes. This resulted in a more watery soup than what we like and thought the liquid should be reduced to 4 cups. Also, using chicken bouillion yields a rather salty soup and you'd get much richer flavor from canned broth or, best of all, from homemade. We simply used bouillon for convenience and frugality.) Dice 4 medium sized potatoes into 1/2 inch cubes and add to the pot. We used red potatoes, but any variety would work. Add 1 bay leaf and a few cranks of fresh black pepper. 

Turn the pot up to high heat and bring everything to a boil. Simmer for about 10 minutes or until the potatoes are very tender. You should easily be able to mash up the potatoes. So, go ahead and do that with a fork or a potato masher or even a blender, depending on how smooth you like your soup. Add 1 cup of milk and 1 cup of shredded cheddar cheese. Stir on low heat until all the cheese has melted. (At this point you could also add some frozen peas or corn or both.) 

Serve and enjoy! Buen provecho!