Cheeseburger Soup

Photo courtesy of crockpot 365.blogspot.com

I found this recipe over at crockpot365.blogspot.com and had all intentions of making it in the crockpot......but it just didn't work out that way.  Yesterday, I forgot to take out the hamburger until late so I wasn't able to brown the beef and get it ready to put on in the morning.  And then, I worked late today, so the preparation was left up to my husband and kids.  Since I didn't really do my part, and cooking it all day was out of the question, they put it on the stovetop and allowed the soup to simmer until the desired consistency.

It was wonderful!


The following is the original recipe and the changes that we made are noted. The soup was so good that none was left, so I think this is a definite keeper.

Recipe


-4 cups chicken broth---used homemade
--1 T dried onion (or 1/2 of a white onion, diced finely)--used a fresh onion
--1 lb lean ground beef, browned and drained on the stove top
--1 red bell pepper, seeded and chopped--We had green so thats what we used.
--2 potatoes, cut in 1-inch cubes (the photo showed 4, but after cutting 2, I saw it was plenty)--used 2 but 3-4 with the size that we had would probably have eliminated the cornstarch slurry.
--2 small garlic cloves, minced
--1 cup milk (to add later, soy is fine)--only used enough to make the slurry, approx. 1/2 cup.
--24 oz Velveeta, cubed (to add later)--only used a small block 16oz I think.
--Tabasco sauce, optional--used cayenne pepper.
--crumbled bacon, optional--didn't have any.

The Directions.

Brown the meat on the stove top with the onion, and drain fat. I have used 1/2 pound instead of a whole pound before, and we didn't miss the extra meat. Set aside to cool a bit.

In a 5-6 quart crockpot, pour in chicken broth. Add garlic, bell pepper, and potatoes (I didn't peel them), and add. Stir in the browned meat and onion.

Cover and cook on low for 6 hours, or until onions are translucent and potatoes are tender. Stir in milk and Velveeta 20-30 minutes before serving. If you'd like the broth thicker, blend a bit with a hand held stick blender.

Garnish with Tabasco sauce and crumbled bacon if desired.



Review


We cooked the chicken broth mixture for approximately 45 jminutes then added the cheese and allowed it to melt over about 10 minutes.  The soup was a little thin for our liking, so we made a cornstarch slurry and thickened it up over another 5 minutes.  It certainly would have been a lot easier for a weeknight meal to cook the chicken broth base in the crockpot, but the I don't think the taste was affected at all.  My only problem was that I planned this meal just before the weather is going to turn cold :(