It’s a cool, rainy Saturday and we weren’t going anywhere today.  Mrs J called for soup and mentioned beans but they really need to soak overnight so I mentioned another of Mrs J’s faves:  Cheesy potato soup.  I got the chicken broth going with a chopped onion and some of those cured ham pieces.  I like to get the ham chunks falling apart done before I add any veggies so I had a little time to surf recipes to look for seasoning tips.  I found this recipe atop the results page and gave it a quick study.  With some modifications I followed it.  Three potatoes were chopped and added to the broth.  I had some bacon frying for garnish so the fat part of a roux was ready.  I removed the bacon to drain on a paper towel and added a little butter to it, then cooked the carrots and celery, adding the flour when they were tender and let the roux cook a few minutes, then added white wine to mobilize it, dumping the veggie mixture into the main pot with the potatoes.  After all the veggies were tender they got a quick buzz with a stick blender.

We both gave it a taste at this point and found it to be very good.  I questioned Mrs J as to the need for cheese and cream but she refused to consider it without.  Fine by me!  I added six ounces of smoked provolone and stirred it to melt, then hit it with a scant cup of heavy cream.  Fabulous!  Perfect!  Some fresh chives from the garden and the bacon for garnish and a crostini with goat’s milk cheddar made this The Best Potato Soup Evah!