Creamy Carrot Potato Soup

Soup. It's what you like to enjoy on a chilly fall or winter night. It's what you pair with an ooey gooey grilled cheese sandwich. Aaaand, it's what you crave when you're sick with a cold. That last point? That's been me for the past several days! I came down with a cold over the Thanksgiving weekend (don't worry; the cold didn't hinder my enjoyment of Thanksgiving dinner ;)). And let me tell you, it's been a doozy of a cold! It's been worse than any cold I've had in the past few years. So, naturally, I have been craving soup this week!

Lucky for me, Gina over at one of my favorite blogs, Simply Life, posted a delicious looking recipe for creamy potato soup this past Monday morning - and right away, I knew that's what I wanted for my dinner that night! I decided to change up the recipe slightly though by adding carrots. Otherwise, the recipe I made was mostly the same, aside from my omission of the red pepper flakes and scallions (simply because I didn't have them on hand). The soup came together in a flash, and let me tell you, it was just what I needed to help with my cold!

The ingredients below are what I used, but you can check out the original Simply Life recipe here.

Ingredients:

-2 Tbsp. olive oil

-3 Idaho potatoes, cubed (I didn't peel mine but you can)

-3 large carrots, sliced in 1/2" pieces

-1 large onion, diced

-2 garlic cloves, diced

-salt and pepper, to taste

-1 tsp. herbs de provence

-4 cups low sodium chicken broth

-shredded cheese of your choice (I used monterey jack)

Instructions:

Heat olive oil in large pot over medium-high heat. Add potatoes, carrots, and onion, and cook, stirring frequently, for 3 to 5 minutes or until onions are tender. Add garlic and cook another minute. Stir in salt, pepper, and herbs. Add broth and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer, 25 to 30 minutes, or until vegetables are tender and cooked through (you can easily test this by sticking a fork in the veggies; it should easily go through them).

Remove soup from heat. Using an immersion blender or transferring soup to a stand blender, blend soup until creamy and smooth. Return to heat. If soup is too thick, add 1 cup of water and stir. Season with salt and pepper. Serve with shredded cheese on top. Enjoy!!

Mmmmmmm....

 

Mike and I both really enjoyed this soup. It had great flavors and was incredibly comforting...just what you want in a soup!

The next day I heated up some leftovers (which I think tasted better than the soup on day 1!), and along side it, I enjoyed some toasted baguette slices with melted cheese on top. Soooo good! I love making a "lazy woman's" grilled cheese like that sometimes. I simply put a slice of cheese on bread and throw it in the toaster. So easy and delicious!

This scene is what my days looked like earlier this week. Soup, tissues, a blanket, and my computer.... Colds don't usually get me badly enough to make me stay home from work, but this one did! Luckily I had some great soup to keep me company. And a cuddly, super cute kitty as well. :)

Definitely keep this soup in mind for an easy, healthy, yummy meal on a chilly winter's night!