It’s soup time again!  The weather has definitely been chilly and soup-weather the past few days…  This is a favorite ‘go-to’ meal in our house…  Easy, affordable, and tasty on a cool winter day.  It would also make a great appetizer for a dinner party! It’s healthy and low fat as well…

It’s basically a carrot & potato soup, served hot (I know, vichyssoise is supposed to be a cold soup), with shredded cheddar on top.  You could also serve cool as a summer soup.  It’s all in the marketing with kids, though.  So if you are serving it to picky eaters, calling it “Cheese Soup” (due to the cheddar on top!) is a better strategy than calling it “vichyssoise”!

Ingredients:
4 c Potatoes, chunked (4 med pototoes)
3 c Carrots, chunked (~1 lb)
1-2 small onions
6 chicken bouillon cubes & 3 3/4 c hot water (or the equivalent amount of chicken stock)

B)
2 Tbs butter
1 1/2 c (12 oz) evaporated milk (or light cream, if you’re not worried about fat – but I think the evaporated milk works wonderfully)
1 1/2 c (12 oz) milk (or less)
1/2 teas Tabasco (or more, to taste)

C)
1 1/2 teas salt (maybe)

How to:
Combine (A) ingredients in a large pot
Bring to a boil, then simmer until veggies are soft.
[Note: For this batch, I used about 3 c liquid, and cooked set A in the pressure cooker. Heat on high until it jiggles, then on low for 4-5 min.]

When the veggies are done, puree them in a blender or use an immersion blender to blend until smooth.
Add group (B)
[Note: I thought I had enough liquid, so I did only about 3/4c milk this time]

Taste, and add salt if needed. If you’re using bouillon cubes, it may be salty enough.

Top with shredded cheddar, and additional Tobasco if desired.

(I wrote this up previously as an Instructable, so if you like more details and pics, go read it!)

[Originally published Mar 2010]