Homemade Potato Soup

I make this recipe without any meat, OR with turkey ham, or ground turkey formed into very, very small "meatballs". Enjoy!

2 tbsp. butter, margarine or olive oil
1/2 cup finely chopped onion
1/2 cup sliced mushrooms
1/2 cup finely chopped celery or bok choy
1/2 lb. Polish sausage, sliced
2 cans (10 oz. each) chicken or vegetable broth
4 to 6 potatoes, cut in various size pieces*
2 cups shredded cabbage (about 1/8 head)
2 shredded or finely chopped carrots*
1 bay leaf
1/8 tsp. chervil
1/8 tsp. thyme
1/8 tsp. marjoram
1/8 tsp. salt
chopped fresh parsley
course ground pepper to taste

Melt butter/margarine (or heat oil) in large saucepan. Add chopped onion, mushrooms, celery and sliced sausage. Cook and stir until vegetables are limp and clean and sausage is beginning to brown. Drain well to remove any grease.

Add stock, the remaining vegetables and spices and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to simmer covered for at least two hours. Check occasionally and add liquid (water) if needed. Taste for seasoning. The trick to VERY THICK potato soup is letting some of the potatoes and vegetables cook into a wonderful chowder-like consistency. If you cook this long enough, the cabbage, onion, celery, etc. will also cook into the thick chowder consistency.

Before serving, you can thicken the soup with instant mashed potato flakes (a little at a time, however.) You can also thicken the soup with frozen hash browned potatoes, left over mashed potatoes, or frozen mashed potatoes.

Remove the bay leaf before serving. You can also add a small amount of milk if you want.

*One last note: if you cut your potatoes in a variety of sizes, from very small to spoon-sized pieces, the small pieces cook into the chowder and the larger pieces will become bite-sized by the time the soup is ready to eat. This also applies to cutting the carrots.

Makes: Approximately 2 1/2 quarts.
From: Peggy, WA