No Regret Baked Potato Soup

Photo from Cooking Light

This is a recipe perfect for game day or any party.  It originated at Cooking Light magazine but I tweaked it a bit to fit us.  We used it at our Holiday Open House this year as a vegetarian option 

and it was gone, baby, gone!

The amazing thing about this recipe is that it not only tastes good, it is actually, unbelievably, good for you too!  There is not one speck of butter or one drop of cream, but you'd never know it.  My estimate is about 250 calories per cup including a tablespoon of each garnish.  (for comparison, Outback Steakhouse's baked potato soup is over 500 calories a cup!)   It would be even lower if you substituted chicken broth for the milk (Weight Watchers and Panera both do this and it shaves 100+ calories off the total) but then it wouldn't be vegetarian, or as creamy.

1/26/12 - UPDATE!
I thinned out my soup for leftovers this week with vegetable broth and it was DELICIOUS!
Possibly even better than the original!
Next time I make it from scratch I'm going to cut the milk in half and add 3C broth, saving 90 calories per serving - WOOT!!

So the next time you have potatoes for supper, make a little extra and save it for some baked potato soup later in the week!!

No Regret Baked Potato Soup

2/3 Cup All-Purpose Flour

6 Cups 2% reduced fat milk
OR 3 Cups Milk and 3 Cups Vegetable Broth (See Update above)

4 Russet Potatoes, baked and mashed

(reserve the skins for another use)

1 Cup reduced fat shredded sharp cheddar

1 tsp salt

1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper

1C reduced fat sour cream

1/2C chopped green onions

In a bowl whisk together flour and milk(and broth, if using) until no lumps remain.  Pour into a large pot, and whisking frequently cook over medium heat until thick and bubbly (8-10 minutes).  


Watch your soup carefully through this stage!  The price to pay for not starting with a buttery roux is that the milk wants to stick to the bottom of your pot.  So every minute or two whisk the heck out of it while it's cooking and lower the heat if it's starting to stick.

Once thickened, add the potatoes. I'm a big fan of my immersion blender (and my kids are weirded out by lumps) so I like to whizz it up a bit to smooth it out, but it's not necessary.  In fact, if you're a fan of lumps, you can cube some of your potatoes with the skin still on and add them in that way.

Add salt, pepper and cheese, stirring until the cheese melts.  Reduce heat to LOW and stir in sour cream and green onions.  Simmer on low heat for 10 minutes (do not boil).

Serve with extra cheese, green onion, sour cream and crumbled bacon for garnish.

Common Sense Reminder:  If you put bacon on top of your soup, it's no longer vegetarian. ;-)

Speaking of bacon, crumbled bacon from Coscto has changed our lives!  It tastes real because it IS real, and it's got no nasty preservatives or fillers like imitation bacon bits.  I'm sure one could argue that bacon by it's very nature is full of preservatives, but I'm in my happy bacon bubble and I can't hear you (lalalalala, fingers in my ears)!!  It's so great with this recipe because you don't have to coat your kitchen in bacon grease to have that little pop of WOW! on top of your soup.

Conversations With Ben

Me:  Great job going to the bathroom by yourself buddy!  Did you remember to wash your hands?

Ben:  Yep!

Me: Are you sure?


Ben: Yes!  I already washed them.  See?  All clean!

Me: So if I feel them they're going to be a little damp?

Ben: (looking at his dry hands) No, they'll be dry because I dried them really well.

Me: Oh, really?

Ben: Just don't smell them, okay?

Me: Why shouldn't I smell them?

Ben:  (thinking...hard) Ummmm, you shouldn't smell them because..... because I love you TOO MUCH! (big cheeser grin)

Me:  Aww, you're so cute I've gotta kiss your face! (smooch!)  Now, enjoy that lemonade you're making - I sure hope it doesn't taste gross since you're making it with dirty hands.

Ben: (thinking) You know Mom?  I think I am going to wash my hands now.  With soap and water.  I'll be right back!

Chicken Enchilada Dip to Die For

It's game day!!  

AFC Championship time, and our Patriots are playing.  

We've got a few friends coming over and I'm making some of my favorite easy recipes for a crowd, including a Chicken Enchilada Dip so good you'll be dreaming up reasons to invite people over just so you can make it again.

I can only make this dip sporadically because I truly lose all self-control around it.  

I've tried other recipes and nothing comes close to the addictiveness - it's honestly that good!

So without further ado, I give you

picture borrowed from birminghammommy.com

Beth's Sister-In-Law Ulia's 

Mother's friend Kathy's

Chicken Enchilada Happiness Dip

(don't say I didn't warn you)

Mix together

2 large cans of Chicken, drained

1 block of cream cheese, softened

18 oz. jar of mayonnaise

18 oz. Shredded Cheddar Cheese 
4 oz. can of green chilies

1 finely chopped fresh jalapeno

1 cup of Trader Joe's tomato-free corn salsa

Bake uncovered at 350 degrees for 30-35 minutes 

OR microwave until bubbly and 

pop in a mini-crockpot turned to low.

Serve with baked Tostitos scoops if you're being good

or Fritos if you're not.




A few notes:  I have found that you can successfully substitute low fat cream cheese and mayo for the full-fat items called for in the recipe.  You can also substitute one cooked, shredded chicken breast for the canned chicken.   You can substitute another salsa, but it WILL change the flavor of the final product.  The TJs adds a special sweetness to the dish that can't be replicated exactly with a substitute.  


The one substitution that I recommend AGAINST is using low-fat cheddar.  
It just doesn't melt right and you'll end up with a gloopy, inferior dip.


Now go!  Go and find yourself some chicken enchilada happiness.  
But when you abandon the chips and just start eating it with a spoon (or worse, your fingers!) 
don't say I didn't warn you!

SNOW Much Fun!

It was 55 degrees up until 2 weeks ago, so I was concerned we might actually get through winter with NO SNOW.  Can you imagine?  I don't know what we'd do without at least a few good sledding days!

Luckily,  Mother Nature was just teasing us and has finally delivered in a big way.  Six inches of perfect powder fell today, with more coming tonight.  The kids had a full day in school and got off the bus to a winter wonderland!

They couldn't enjoy it right away though.  Mean mommy duties came first.  Despite much protesting, I had to force them indoors for the inevitable blood sugar crash that comes like clockwork every afternoon.  They are running on empty by the time they get home at four o'clock, and the one who feels it most is poor Jack, who usually ends up letting his frustration out audibly, with ranting, raving and a few primal screams.  I made them strip off their snow gear directly into the dryer, and shoved a full pan of homemade Fruity Pebbles treats in front of them.  Jack was practically foaming at the mouth he was so delirious with anger over the ordeal (Imagine!  being forced apart from your friends to EAT!!??  The horror!!  The despair!!)  So I microwaved a bacon cheeseburger and used it to plug him up before he could say one more nasty thing to get himself into trouble.

Ten minutes later, as if by magic, the dark clouds had passed, and the clothes were hot and dry and ready for a second wearing.

The snow was still waiting, and so were our friends!

This is Brody, or B.K. as his Mom calls him for short.  

Cutest little pink-cheeked elf in the neighborhood!

The kids in St. Raphael's religious ed. program (mine included) are trying to raise money to pay for wells in Africa.  Drew led the charge of clearing neighbors walkways when his mom promised him a quarter.  

Jack and Brandon were busily building a mound of snow.  What for?  Nobody knows.

Connor loves Angry Birds, but he's a sweet bird if you ask me!

'Mr. Brett', the neighborhood snow removal service.  He keeps getting mad at us because we paid our landscaper to plow us out - he wants to do it for free because he has so much fun playing with his snow blower.

Snow angel prep.

Ha!  Caught you mom!

Snowy lashes.

One-eyed Molly.

Nothing but trouble.

No, seriously.  

He smashed a 2nd grader in the eye with his shovel, leaving a nasty welt.  

Then he crawled under a car that was idling on the curb in front of our next-door neighbor's house.  Marc saw him and yelled "Ben!  Get on the sidewalk!!" He crawled out 

AS THE CAR WAS PULLING AWAY!!!  

Two seconds later and his legs would have been crushed. 

If this kid survives his childhood, it's going to be in spite of himself.

Snow angels for our little devil.

  We stayed out until dark.

The snow is still falling.

Can't WAIT 'till tomorrow!!

We're going to sled until our faces freeze!

Homemade Pumpkin Spice Latte

I just spent the better part of a half hour searching for this recipe in my Facebook archives.  


I've always kept my favorite recipes typed on my computer so that someday I can make a cookbook out of them...but that computer kicked the bucket last night, possibly for the last time. :(

So I'm going to use the blog as my repository from now on.  That way I get to keep them for when I need them, and share them too! It's a win-win for everyone

This is the recipe I'm splurging on today, having met my very first weight loss goal!  Sadly, the first goal was just getting back to my pre-Christmas weight...but you gotta start somewhere right??  

And since I'm trying to be more disciplined with my spending as well as my calories, blowing $5 on a latte from Starbucks wasn't a move I wanted to make. 

This recipe for a homemade version is mighty yummy and a cinch to make!




In a blender, puree




1 cup of your favorite coffee creamer


1/4 cup canned pumpkin


cinnamon/vanilla/pumpkin pie spice to taste


sweetener of choice




Pour into your coffee (hot or iced) and enjoy!

Cracking the Molly Code

A slew of work came home in Molly's folder this week.  This is big news because her teacher, Mrs. Baumgartner, is not big on sending home much of anything.  We get a monthly newsletter telling us what they are up to, and that's about it!

That's why it's been so long since I had any of Molly's writing to share.  She has the loveliest penmanship of any six year old I know!  But that "phonetic spelling" is still throwing me for a loop.  

Here's what she wrote in her school journal on 12-15-11

" I am icsididbeeecus

I am goaign 

to Masuchoosits!!!"

Life is Hilarious

Fresh off his 3rd place victory at the American Karate Association Grand Tournament in Chicago this weekend, Jack is so inspired that he walks around doing karate moves all. day. long.

He has been working on a "creative form", set to music.  Imagine Lady Gaga throbbing in your ears at nightclub levels, while our resident ninja dances himself silly with karate moves.  And karate 'smack talk', which is basically a bunch of yells and screams designed to scare off would-be dance partners.

KEEEEY  AAYYYYYY!!!!

TAAAASSSSSS!

KAASSSSSSS!

AAAAAAAAAHHHHH!!!

Now as an added layer of entertainment, Jack wants this to be realistic, so he has chosen two 'judges' to watch him perform.  A six year old and four year old who think his dance is a total laugh riot.

They are barking at him now, and falling over backward laughing at themselves.

He presses on.

They start to attack him like ninjas.

Still, our valiant hero presses on.

Finally the assault gets so intense that mom has to step in and send the big guy to go get dressed.

Molly wanders off to whine about needing a costume for all this excitement.

And with the music still going, the four year old in his superman pajamas plays on, imitating his brother for all he's worth doing his own 'creative form'.

Just another morning in the Mallett house!