In The Kitchen - Soup's On!

There's just a touch of fall in the air in the early morning hours here at our house and I love it! It's still hot in the afternoon, but those cooler mornings have me longing for a big pot of soup simmering on the stove! So today, I'd like you to share your favorite soup recipes!

Two of my favorite soups are Taco Soup and Baked Potato Soup (which I once forgot to use baked potatoes for, but that's another story!). I have no idea where I got the recipe for Taco Soup, but the Baked Potato Soup recipe came from allrecipes.com. Here are the recipes, in case you'd like to try them out soon:

Taco Soup

2 lb. ground chuck, browned and drained

1 medium onion, chopped

4 (16 oz) cans crushed tomatoes

1 (16 oz) can pinto or kidney beans, drained

1 (16 oz) can whole kernel corn, undrained

1 pkg. taco seasoning

1 pkg. ranch dressing mix

1 (4 oz) can chopped green chilies

1 1/2 tsp. salt

1 qt. water

Combine all ingredients in a large soup pot. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer for 1 1/2 hours. Serve with corn chips, shredded Cheddar cheese and sour cream.

Baked Potato Soup

12 slices bacon, cooked and crumbled

2/3 cup butter

2/3 cup all purpose flour

7 cups milk

4 large baked potatoes, peeled and cubed

4 green onions, chopped

1 1/4 cups shredded Cheddar cheese

1 cup sour cream

1 tsp. salt

1 tsp. ground black pepper

In a large soup pot or Dutch oven, melt the butter over medium heat. Whisk in flour until smooth. Gradually stir in milk, whisking constantly until thickened. Stir in potatoes and green onions (reserving a few for garnish). Bring to a boil, stirring frequently. Reduce heat and simmer for 10 minutes. Mix in bacon (reserving some for garnish), Cheddar cheese (reserving some for garnish), sour cream, salt and pepper. Continue cooking, stirring frequently, until cheese in melted. Serve topped with reserved green onions, bacon and Cheddar cheese.

If you'd like, I love to hear your favorite soup recipes! If this goes well, I'd like to make this a weekly feature here on my blog - a place to share our favorite recipes.