Crock Pot Potato Soup

Weather.com lied to me this week with talks of storms, rain, and tornado warnings (well, they might have been close with that one).  I have been wanting to make this recipe I came across in Taste of Home...crock pot potato soup.  What better way to get over an annoyingly rainy day than to come home to potato soup??  Fail.  It was gorgeous yesterday.  Hot and sunny.  After tasting the soup though, I didn't regret it one bit.  It was delish.  I'm a sucker for potato soup and this easy peasy recipe, compared to Panera... in my opinion (and my husbands).  Thick and cheesy.  Yum. 

Here it is:

1 bag (32 oz) frozen southern-style diced hash brown potatoes, thawed - (mine were frozen b/c I forgot to take them out of the freezer...)

1 cup frozen chopped onion (from 12-oz bag), thawed (see frozen potato comment)

1 medium stalk celery, diced (1/2 cup)

1 carton (32-oz) Progresso® chicken broth

1 cup water

S&P to taste

3 tablespoons Gold Medal® all-purpose flour

1 cup milk

1 bag (8 oz) shredded American-Cheddar cheese blend - I used a ColbyJack blend

1/4 cup real bacon pieces (from 2.8-oz package) - optional for topping

4 medium green onions, sliced (1/4 cup)  - optional for topping

In 3- to 4-quart slow cooker, mix potatoes, onion, celery, broth and water. Add salt and pepper to taste. I added a lot. It's my thing.

Cover; cook on Low heat setting 6 to 8 hours.  Add more S&P if you wish.  I did.

In small bowl, mix flour into milk; stir into potato mixture. Increase heat setting to High. Cover; cook 20 to 30 minutes or until mixture thickens. Stir in cheese until melted. Garnish individual servings with bacon and green onions. Sprinkle with pepper if desired.

Serve in a bread bowl if you wish

With a salad and some vino

So next time it gets cold out, which I hear might be this weekend (wtf!), or if you're like me - on any nice and sunny day, whip this up.  You won't regret it. 

Oh and it makes enough for leftovers... one batch is probably enough for 6 people.  I'm totally guessing on that by the way, but that's what I'm thinking.