Messed Up Mashed Potato Soup

Last week I made a venison roast for dinner. And, I wanted real homemade mashed potatoes to go with it.

I peeled three pounds of "B" size reds, put them in a pan and boiled them until they were soft enough to mash. My step-son wanted to help, so I asked him to splash some milk into the pan. I neglected to specify how much milk. The mashed potatoes ended up the consistency of Elmers glue.

I put the pan on the back burner, until after dinner. I didn't want to waste three pounds of potatoes, so I decided to try to make a corrupt version of a soup I love. The original recipe calls for one cup of heavy whipping cream, but the potatoes were already criminally creamy.

What I did was essentially the same as the recipe, but the result was a much lower calorie, more mellow and savory soup. I was fully prepared to dump the entire concoction in the trash, but as it turns out, it was delicious and I had it for lunch the next day and even shared it with a friend.

Messed Up Mashed Potato Soup

Ingredients

2 tbls butter or margarine
1/2 c onions; chopped
1/2 c carrots; chopped
1/2 c celery; chopped
2 cloves garlic; finely chopped
2 tbls all-purpose flour
4 c chicken stock
1/4 cup dill weed
1/4 ts black pepper
1 cup whole milk
3 lbs. "B" red potatoes; peeled and diced
2 tbls cider vinegar; (2 to 3)

Instructions

Boil the potatoes in a large Dutch Oven pan until soft enough to mash. Drain water from potatoes in a collander, and return potatoes to pan. Whip potatoes with the 1 cup of milk. Consistency should be like Elmer's Glue

Melt the butter and saute in a large frying pan the onions,
carrots, celery, and garlic on medium-high heat for 4 to 6 minutes, or
until the vegetables are tender, but not browned. Reduce heat to medium.
Stir in the flour and cook, stirring constantly, for 2 minutes. (Do not
brown.)

Stir chicken stock into the potatoes and whisk. Add sauteed vegetables, vinegar, black pepper and dillweed. Stir well and let simmer on low for 30 minutes. Serve warm.

The Pantry Is Bare...

...of pre-processed foods that is.

My 11 year old son (and I) have a terrible adverse reaction to MSG - mono sodium glutemate. Within hours of ingesting it, we both experience excruciating migraine headaches, vomiting and then the need to sleep for hours. We've become avid label readers in this household. Neither of us can afford to lose from 24 - 48 hours of our lives each time we eat something that includes MSG in the ingredients.

MSG is found in many canned and boxed foods. It is a neuro-transmitter. It tricks your brain into thinking food tastes better than it actually does, and encourages you to eat more. For more information about its side effects, you can find it here -
MSG is a DRUG and NEURO-TRANSMITTER.

So, needless to say, most of the food eaten in this house is made from scratch. The pantry is full of spices, herbs, MSG free stock, and baking goods. I can honestly say my family eats healthy and well.