Fully Loaded Cheesy Potato Soup With Ginas Spinach Salad Recipes

FULLY-LOADED CHEESY POTATO SOUP WITH GINA'S SPINACH SALAD 2

Steps:

• Melt the butter in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add the garlic, carrots, celery and onions, and cook until the vegetables begin to soften, about 4 minutes. Sprinkle the flour into the saucepan to toast the flour, stirring constantly, about 2 minutes. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Gradually whisk in the stock, and then the milk and beer. Stir in the potatoes and bring the soup to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer the soup until the potatoes are tender, 20 to 30 minutes.
• Remove the saucepan from the heat and, using an immersion blender, puree the soup until smooth. Return the soup to low heat. Add 1 cup of the Cheddar, a handful at a time, stirring until melted and smooth after each addition. Add additional chicken stock if necessary to adjust the consistency. Sprinkle with hot sauce, Worcestershire, salt and pepper. Divide the soup among bowls and top with the remaining Cheddar, sour cream, bacon and chives. Serve with Gina's Spinach Salad with Spiced Pecans.
• Gina's Spinach Salad
• Spiced Pecans:
• Spinach Salad:
• For the pecans: Melt the butter in a large skillet over medium-low heat. Stir in all the spices and the pecans. Stir and toast the pecans for about 5 minutes. Transfer them to a plate to cool.
• For the salad: Whisk together the balsamic vinegar, Dijon mustard and shallots in a small bowl. Drizzle in the olive oil in a continuous stream, whisking to emulsify. Season with a pinch of sugar, salt and pepper.
• Add the spinach to a large serving bowl. Toss the greens with the prepared dressing, the bacon, blue cheese, cherry tomatoes and spiced pecans.

CHUNKY CHEESE POTATO SOUP AND WILTED SPINACH SALAD

Steps:

• In a large pot, cook the bacon until it is browned and crispy. Remove the bacon strips and crumble, leaving the drippings in the pot.
• Cook the onion and potatoes in the bacon drippings until they are tender, approximately 15 minutes. Stir in the cream, salt, and pepper. Dredge the cheese in flour and slowly add the cheese to the pot until it is melted. Add the crumbled bacon to the pot and stir everything together until it reaches your desired consistency.
• Serve in a hollowed out bread roll.
• In a medium sized pan, cook the bacon until it is browned and crispy. Remove the bacon strips from the pan, leaving only the drippings. Slowly add the vinegar to the pan, whisking constantly. Whisk in the sugar. Put the spinach into the pan and toss the leaves with the dressing until they wilt slightly. Remove the salad from the pan and garnish with chopped tomatoes and crumbled bacon.

FULLY-LOADED BAKED POTATO SOUP

Steps:

• Place bacon in a large skillet and cook over medium-high heat, turning occasionally, until crisp, about 10 minutes. Remove from skillet and crumble. Reserve drippings.
• Place potatoes in a pot; cover with water. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium-low. Cook, covered, until tender, 15 to 20 minutes. Drain.
• Melt butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add onion and garlic; saute until onion is translucent, about 5 minutes. Stir in bacon crumbles, reserved bacon drippings, flour, salt, and pepper. Reduce heat; add the boiled potatoes, half-and-half, and chicken broth. Simmer until thickened, about 5 minutes. Add sour cream and 1 cup Cheddar cheese; cook and stir until heated through, about 5 minutes. Garnish soup with remaining Cheddar cheese and parsley.