I have been waiting for Fall to arrive. I think Fall has always been my absolute favorite season. To me it means beginnings. I know, I know, Spring means rebirth, but I live in South Louisiana, and Spring is a wet month or so before the scorching summer begins.
Now Fall....Fall is crisp air, less rain, and lower humidity. Fall is when we begin to get back into our yards. Fall is when you can finally draw a deep breath outside because the air is not so heavy. Fall is the beginning of school when so much is still possible. Fall is football. The smells of Fall abound with the sweet spiciness of cinnamon, apples and pumpkin. I love Fall colors, Fall clothing, and Fall foods.
As soon as the temperatures dip into the low 70s, the Gumbo pot comes out. Fall is a time for soups and stews. Although I love Gumbo, I'll post that recipe nearer to Christmas, as that is our traditional meal for Christmas Eve.
Today, I want to post a recipe for my next favorite soup. This is not a soup I grew up on. Moma never made potato soup. It's made with milk and Daddy thought if the gravy wasn't brown, it was disgusting. I learned to love milk based gravies in college at Louisiana Tech. I'm sorry Daddy never gave it a try, because this is inexpensive, and yummy. We like to eat this soup with a bagette and salad. Heaven!
Potato Soup
2 slices bacon
4 large potatoes, peeled and rough cut into chunks
1 1/2 Tbsp. dehydrated onion (or 1/2 onion)
1 carrot, sliced
1 stalk of celery sliced thinly
4 cups of water
2 vegetable bouillon cubes
1/4 tsp. garlic granules, or 1 clove garlic, chopped
1 1/3 cup powdered milk dissolved in 1 cup water (use 2/3 cup powdered milk if using cannery milk) (You can also use 1 can evaporated milk instead.)
1/2 tsp. black pepper
Cajun Seasoning to taste ( We like Tony's)
Cheddar Cheese to top
Fry up the bacon in the soup pot. Remove from pot and rough cut and set aside. Inthe bacon grease add the potatoes, black pepper, carrots, onions and celery . Cook until potatoes begin to get a little color on them. Add the water,garlic, and bouillon cubes. Simmer until potatoes are tender. Turn down the heat. Mix the milk and water together before adding to the soup. Simmer gently. If the heat is too high, the milk will curdle. Add the bacon back before serving.
Because the bacon is so salty, we don't add more to the soup. There is also salt in the Cajun seasonings.
Notes: if you don't have celery, you could use 1/2 tsp. celery salt, or just leave it out. I also like sweet peas in this soup, but have to put it in seperately as my son does not like peas. You can stick blend the soup for a creamier version, but I never do. I like vegetable bouillon because it adds a richness of flavor. If you prefer it, chicken broth is more traditional.
Now that we can make buttermilk, we have a wide variety of new recipes open to us. When I discovered how to make cultured buttermilk, I wondered if it would make this sauce like "real buttermilk". I'm happy to report that yes it does.
