Baked Potato Soup

Who likes to eat?

Me too. I don’t really post recipes on her, leaving that to my sister blog Mysterious Eats.

Weeeeeeeeeeelll…with one exception. If it has to do with Jane Austen or a tea party, I review and post it.

Last year I helped put on a tea, and fashioned it after a teahouse I used to go to when I lived near Santa Rosa. They would always serve scones (I did the Cheddar-Thyme Scones and the Harvest Pumpkin Scones) and tea sandwiches. You could also add on tarts, little turnovers, salad, or soup.

This soup may not be a real “tea soup”, but I thought it was tasty, easy to make, and fancy looking.

Ingredients:

• 3 Tablespoons of Onion, finely chopped
• 5 Tablespoons of Butter
• 5 Tablespoons of Flour
• 1 14-oz can of Chicken Broth
• 1/3 Cup of Cheddar Cheese, grated
• 1 Baked Potato (6-7 inch baker), cold, cut into bite-sized pieces.
• 2 Cups of Half-and-Half
• 1 Cup of Milk
• 1/2 Teaspoon of Salt
• 1/8 Teaspoon of Black Pepper
• 6 Slices of Bacon, cooked, broken into bits (Or use Bacon Bits)
• Cheddar Cheese, to go on top

Directions:

1. Sauté the onions in butter.
2. While stirring, slowly add the flour and then the chicken broth.
3. Cook until it thickens.
4. Add the cheddar cheese, stirring until it melts.
5. Then add the potato, leaving the skin on the pieces.
6. Finally stir in the half-and-half and the milk.
7. Season with salt and pepper.
8. Top each serving with crumbled bacon and cheddar cheese.

It is a fantastic tasting soup, and having cooked the potatoes it takes like no time at all.

Yay!

The only thing is that you have to be careful when adding the milk or half-and-half. The lactose sugar in them can burn and ruin the dish, so you have to keep stirring. The more you stir the less likely it will burn.

One time I had my niece hep me and I felt like that scene in Goodfellas when Henry Hill keeps telling his brother to watch the sauce. Just like Michael she didn’t enjoy the stirring.

No more stirring.

But it was easy, delicious, and will be a great addition to any future tea parties or dinners.

For more recipes, go to Triple Berry Salad

Harlem Tea Room Cheddar-Thyme Scones

So this recipe is borrowed from my sister blog, MysteriousEats.wordpress.com. Anytime she has a recipe that goes with Jane Austen (being time period or great to eat with her books/films) I’n going to post it on here.

So this comes from the same magazine that the Harlem Tea Room Baking Powder Scones were in, an old O- the Oprah magazine.

The article gave three versions of the recipe: Baking Powder Scones, Cheddar-Thyme Scones, and Raisin Scones. As I already did the Baking Powder, I thought I would try out the Cheddar-Thyme ones.

Ingredients:

• 8 Tbsps (1 Stick) of Cold, Unsalted Butter, Cut into Small Pieces, Plus Extra for Baking Sheets
• 3.5 Cups of All-Purpose Flour, Plus Extra for Later
• 2 Tsp of Baking Soda
• 2 Tsp Cream of Tartar
• 1/2 Tsp of Salt
• 2 Cups of Grated Cheddar Cheese
• 1 Tbsp of Fresh Thyme, Chopped
• 1.5 Cups of Sour Cream or Buttermilk
• 1 Egg, Beaten, or Milk for Brushing Scones

Directions:

1. Preheat the Oven to 400 degrees F.
2. Coat two baking sheets with butter.
3. Sift flour, baking soda, cream of tartar, and salt into a large bowl.
4. Add butter, using fingertips to combine until mixture takes on texture of fine cornmeal.
5. Stir in 1.5 cups of grated Cheddar cheese and 1 Tbsp of chopped fresh Thyme into mixture.
6. Add sour cream or buttermilk and stir until flour mixture is just moist and dough begins to stick together.
7. Gather dough into a ball and knead lightly until fully integrated.
8. Place dough on floured work surface and roll with a floured rolling pin to 3/4 inch thick.
9. Dip a 2-inch cutter into flour and cut out scones as close to one another as possible.
10. Place on prepared baking sheets with space in between.Let stand ten minutes, then brush the tops with egg or milk.
11. Sprinkle tops with an additional 1/2 cup of Cheddar cheese before baking.
12. Bake until golden brown, 10-12 mins.
13. Serve warm with butter, clotted cream, fruit preserves, or jam.
14. Makes about 1.5 dozens.

THOUGHTS AFTER BAKING:

Were very good. All they need was a bit of butter

NOW

However, the thyme took forever. Like an hour to chop, but I made them another time with dried thyme and it wasn’t as good as fresh. It may take a long time, but it is worth it.

Absolutely delicious and I will make again and again.

And eat all by myself

For more scone recipes, go to Harvest Pumpkin Scones

For more on Peter Pan, go to It’s Always Tea Time  

And for weekly recipe reviews, go to Mysterious Eats

The song for today is As Long As There’s Christmas from Beauty and the Beast: The Enchanted Christmas.

This song was written for the film by Rachel Portman and Don Black; and sung by the cast.

The thing I like about this song is the message it brings, no matter what as long as we celebrate Christmas we celebrate the hope the holiday brings.

For more on Beauty and the Beast: The Enchanted Christmas, go to 25 Films of Christmas

For more Christmas Carols, go to Xactly Why I Think Beastly is An Xcellent Story