Baby It's Cold Outside...

Good morning!  I hope everyone is warm and toasty wherever they are reading this!  Mr. and Mrs. Smith spent a very relaxing New Year's weekend together, which went something along the lines of Mr. Smith watching EVERY. SINGLE. FOOTBALL. GAME. on television, while Mrs. Smith cleaned, organized, and other "wifely" duties like that.  Mr. Smith did take a break on Saturday to go to his beloved Boligee for hunting, and I got the chance to make a big batch of homemade potato soup.  It really should be called "Patience Potato Soup" because it is a little time consuming and the result is not immediate.  However, it is delicious and also very economically friendly to the 'ol budget.  :)  Which I love, of course. 

Homemade (Patience) Potato Soup

You can really make as much or as little as you want, because the ingredients are flexible. 

Ingredients

• 
  
  Red skin potatoes - peeled and cut into about half-inch blocks (Most economical to buy one of those 3 lb. bags of potatoes.  I peeled mine while watching "20 Years of the Duggar Family" on TLC and the process flew by!)
  
  
• 
  
  Medium Onion - chopped - about a cup
  
  
• 
  
  2 - 3 Cans of Chicken Broth (depending on how much you want; if you use 3 lbs. of potatoes, I suggest using 3 cans)
  
  
• 
  
  Half-and-Half - about 2 cups
  
  
• 
  
  Shredded Cheddar Cheese  - about 3 cups (I used both Medium and Sharp cheddar cheeses)
  
  
• 
  
  Salt - about a teaspoon
  
  
• 
  
  Pepper - about a teaspoon
  
  
• 
  
  Crock Pot
  
  Directions

• Put potatoes, onion, salt, and chicken broth into crock pot and let cook for about 6 hours on low.  (You read that right - 6 hours.  Told you it took patience!)  You can also do it on High for 3 hours, whatever it takes to get the potatoes tender.
• After the 6 hours, pour in about 1 1/2 to 2 cups of Half-and-Half and Pepper and stir together.  Cook on High for about 15 minutes.
• Take Cover off of Crock Pot and let stand about 5 minutes.
• Stir in Cheese until melted. 
• Serve with Crumpled Bacon, Bread, etc.
• Refrigerate Leftovers.

The great thing about this recipe is that it is basically fool-proof and so delicious on a cold day like today.