Elayna's Potato Soup

Whenever my Grandpa Neal would come to visit my mom would make cheesy soup. That's because cheesy soup was vegetarian and Grandpa couldn't have meat. He knew he couldn't have meat because the last time he tried it and went grocery shopping with me afterwards he threw up at the check out stand. So he didn't eat any meat (besides beef jerky and hot dogs, because for some reason his stomach could handle those). When my roommate Elayna raved about her favorite potato soup, my expectations were low. I'd already tried "potato soup" with velveeta cheese and broccoli and carrots. I was silently taken aback when I tried her soup for the first time and loved it. It was creamy from some of the smashed potatoes, without being too rich. It had a strong white cheddar flavor and was complimented with the celery I'd happily donated to the cause. Her soup was so simple, just potatoes, celery, and white cheddar, but was utterly delectable. I licked my bowl entirely clean, not wanting to waste any of it.

Eating this soup always takes me back to the first time I had it. We'd just gone sledding with some of the boys from Clark apartments at the sand dunes and came back with an appetite. Reese and I helped peel potatoes for the soup and then sat around the counter talking and sipping on our hot chocolate while it simmered.

Elayna's Potato Soup 

Ingredients:

• 8 cups chicken broth (ya know water and boullion)
• 8 potatoes peeled and diced
• 2 cups milk
• 2 Tbsp flour
• 2 tsp paprika
• 2 tsp salt
• 1 tsp black pepper
• 5 bacon strips, cooked and crumbled
• 1 cup diced celery 
• 1/2 cup diced green onion
• 2 cups cheddar, 1 white 1 yellow

Directions:

1. Boil the broth. 
2. Boil the potatoes until they are soft. Smash most of them into the soup so it's creamy. 
3. In another bowl measure the flour and slowly add the milk, whisking continuously so it doesn't get lumpy. Now pour that into the soup. 
4. Add everything else (bacon, spices, celery, onion, cheese). Add more milk or flour till it looks right. 
5. Simmer for like 10 minutes or until it looks done. 

Bacon Ranch Cheeseball

Mom makes this cheeseball for holidays. It's very easy and addictive. It's my favorite thing to eat during Thanksgiving when everything else is still cooking and off limits.

Cheeseball

Ingredients:

• 1 package cream cheese, 8 oz softened
• 1/2 cup chopped bacon 
• 3 teaspoons garlic powder
• 3 teaspoons onion powder
• 3 teaspoons ranch dressing mix
• 1/2 cup grated cheddar cheese
• 1/3 cup chopped pecans/slivered almonds

Directions:

1. Beat cream cheese and seasonings till smooth. 
2. Add cheese and bacon. 
3. Cover in plastic wrap, shape as a sphere, and chill for about an hour
4. Unwrap and roll in chopped nuts. Rewrap and chill until serving with crackers and veggies. 

Cheese Fondue

One of my favorite New Years traditions is a fondue party. We make angel food cake and whipped cream the morning of. New Years is the only time we eat angel food cake, and we call it angel foo cake instead of food. There's also chocolate fondue and fruit, caramel too. Mom pulls out the mini wok with boiling chicken broth and you can use skewers to cook vegetables. My favorite part of the fondue party is the cheese fondue with french bread. This isn't like that velveeta cheese that people put on vegetables, it is thick garlic parmesan fondue and I love it! This year I got the recipe from her. It is super easy to whip up, you could make it in the microwave just as a dip instead of a fondue. The recipe uses a lot of estimation rather than exact measurements, just adjust it till it looks right. You can use real parmesan cheese or the canned stuff. I prefer it with more milk than cream so it's a little lighter, but it's about a cup of liquid either way.

Cheese Fondue

Ingredients:

• 1 package cream cheese
• 1 cup cream (or half and half)
• 1 cup parmesan cheese
• 1 Tablespoon garlic powder
• 3 teaspoons onion powder

Directions:

1. Combine everything and melt it. Adjust ingredients to taste. It should be very thick.