Slow Cooker Ham, Broccoli, and Cheese Soup

 I was just thinking to myself that the world can't possibly have enough slow cooker ham and potato soup recipes. This was a grave injustice that deserved remedy. That, and I had a bag of potatoes that was about to turn into compost if I didn't use them soon. This is about as utilitarian a soup as you'll ever find. There are no real surprises or innovations here, other than maybe the use of American cheese slices. This is just solid winter fare. This will fill you up and keep you warm. This is not the soup you need right now. It is the soup you deserve. I think that might have been from Batman. I don't know, it's been a long week. Anyways, it's easy to make and it's good. It's also flexible. Leave out the ham, add sausage. Go vegetarian and leave out the meet but add some carrots. Go wild. As always, notes are in blue.

Slow Cooker Ham, Broccoli, and Cheese Soup

Ingredients

• 8 cups cubed (about 1/4") potatoes (peel them if you want, we never bother)
• 1 cup sweet onion, finely chopped
• 1 lb. frozen broccoli
• 4 ounces cream cheese (we use neufchatel)
• 1 lb. ground ham (this may be a problem to find. We use ground ham from Toohill Seed & Beef Service. If you can't find it or are unable to order it, substitute an equivalent weight of ham you chop up yourself.)
• 8 slices American cheese (if this seems horrifying, just substitute 8 ounces of shredded cheddar or Velveeta)
• 3 cups water or chicken stock
• 1 cup milk
• 1 tablespoon Gateway to the North seasoning from the Spice House. (if you can't/won't get this spice blend, you can make do with whatever spices you enjoy)

Directions

1. In a large (5-6 quart) slow cooker, add the potatoes, then layer the cheeses over the potatoes. 
2. Add all other ingredients over the cheese.
3. Cook on LOW for 7 hours, stirring every couple hours.

Good Times!

Sweet Potatoes, Peppers, Onions and Sausage

     Every now and then the inspiration for a recipe comes from a single ingredient. That's what happened here. I had bought some Maple Honey Brats from Toohill Beef and they had been sitting in my freezer for a while. I didn't just want to grill them and call it a day. Toohill's stuff deserves a little more effort than that. It seemed a skillet was in order. I decided to go with the theme of the sweetness of the brats and go sweet for the overall theme. It came out wonderfully. The sweetness of the ingredients played well with the savory undertones of the brats. Basically, it tasted really good.

Sweet Potato, Pepper, Onion and Sausage

Ingredients

• 4 sweet potatoes, peeled
• 1 large, sweet onion, cut into 1" pieces
• 2 sweet red bell peppers, cut into 1" pieces
• 1lb. Toohill Maple Honey Brats (obviously, if you're not in Illinois, these may be a bit harder to get. In a pinch, you can substitute sweet Italian sausage)
• 1 teaspoon sage
• 2 tablespoons olive oil

Directions

1. Cook the bratwurst however you want. Seriously, It doesn't really matter. Just don't boil them. That would be horrifying. (It was raining like crazy the day I made this, so I couldn't grill them. I wound up cooking them on a grill pan on the stove) Cut into about 1" pieces.
2. Parboil the potatoes. (time parboiling may vary. It took me about 10-12 minutes after dropping the potatoes into boiling water)
3. While the potatoes are parboiling, heat the oil in a skillet and all the peppers and onions. Saute for about 5-7 minutes on medium-high heat.
4. When the potatoes are done parboiling, remove them from the water and cut them up into 1-2" inch pieces. Toss them into the skillet and cook an additional 2-4 minutes depending on how big your potato pieces are. They should be approaching fork tender at this point. 
5. Add the cut up sausages. Cook another 2 minutes. Add sage and toss to coat evenly. (Cooking times are going to vary. What you're looking for is fork tender potatoes, and peppers and onions with a little bit of crunch. Obviously, the brats should be cooked well enough that you don't poison anyone. That's always critical. Good luck.)

Good times!