For my last post, I presented a recipe for “French Peasant Bread” and mentioned how wonderful this bread was to accompany soup. I teased you with an upcoming potato soup and decided to continue my peasant theme.
Just waiting for the soup.
Growing up we had some go-to quick suppers that my sister and I loved. One was hamburger gravy over bread. Hamburger gravy was simply about a half pound of hamburger (from our own cattle) browned with enough milk added to make a gravy. Could we get anymore peasant-like than that?
Another simple supper was potato soup. Mom’s soup was simply cooked potatoes, bacon, bacon fat, onions and milk. I remember it fondly.
Okie Peasant Potato Soup
based on Mom’s6 slices bacon, cooked crisp (reserve bacon fat)
6 (about 1 1/2 lbs.) red potatoes, cubed (leave skin on)
1 c. sliced carrots
1 T. dried shallots
3 c. chicken broth
2 T. bacon fat
1 garlic clove, minced
2 T. flour
3 c. 2 % milk
1/4 t. salt
1/4 t. fresh ground pepper
Grated mild cheddarCook bacon crisp and reserve 2 tablespoons of the bacon fat. Crumble bacon and set aside.
Place potatoes, carrots, dried shallots and chicken broth in a large sauce pan and bring to a boil. Cook until carrots and potatoes are tender, about 10 minutes.
In a smaller sauce pan, make a white sauce. Heat bacon fat and lightly sauté garlic. (Do not over cook.) Add the flour and whisk until mixture bubbles so you know the flour will not taste raw. Carefully whisk in milk to make a sauce. Cook to a simmer and then remove from heat. Season with salt and pepper.
Whisk sauce into the potato mixture. Stir until smooth, leaving chunks of potato and carrots. Add bacon. Adjust seasonings.
Serve. Garnish with cheese.
Makes about 6 servings.
Mom used perhaps more bacon fat and sautéd lots of onions. Since we were iced in these last couple of days, I only had dried shallots. Mom’s recipe was also sans carrots but I added them anyway. Now, could you make this soup without the bacon fat? Sure, you could substitute butter or olive oil but let me tell you—it wouldn’t be as good!
Mom’s potato soup
Growing up, we really didn’t think of ourselves as poor. We were just like most kids in our community and probably better off than some. (Our school was 100% free/reduced lunches so if you know anything about the federal child nutrition program, you know that most of the families were at the poverty level.) It wasn’t until a year or two out of college that Dad sat me down to say how much he appreciated me working my way through school because he prayed that I wouldn’t have to ask for money when I was visiting on the weekends. There was usually none to be had.
I guess this is an homage to my parents (and the parents of most of my friends) who kept our poverty from us and made us feel like normal kids with nothing to be ashamed of.
We thought we were eating just fine as we feasted on hamburger gravy and potato soup.
Even the leftovers are good!
A very sweet post. And the soup looks great!
Thank you, Mimi.
Hi Debra!
I think it was the same way for us too. Our parents sheltered us from so many things back then. Now everything is out there in the open! Your potato soup looks so comforting. Just perfect with that bread you baked! Thank you so much for sharing…
I hate to say “Those were the days,” but I think I will. Thanks for the kind words, Louise.
A simple yet very tasty soup, Debra.
I think we would eat this every week.
One of my most favorite things to eat when I was a kid was chicken gravy on plain old white bread. omg = so good. And yes, I’ve had the hamburger gravy on bread too. Your soup looks really good Debra. Great post.
Did you say grandma’s chicken gravy? I loved that on white bread, too.
Great post. Great soup!
Thanks, Rachel.
I remember the hamburger gravy over toast! I loved that meal, but since it looks like your mom made gravy like mine – lots of bacon and other fats. 🙂 This is a great soup with the classic flavors of home!!! You’re taking me back girl! 🙂
Ah, when we could eat lots of fat and carbs! 🙂
I would give just about anything for a bowl of that right now. I am recovering from bronchitis and soup is my current addiction. I don’t want anything else. Ok, I would eat hamburger gravy over toast!
Hope you’re feeling better, Tina.
I loved this. I think all kids really need an abundance of is love, and as long as there’s enough of everything else, they’re happy. I was the same way – I never realized we were poor but I knew I was loved. 🙂 Love the soup!
Great comment, Veronica.
look’s so great, it makes me hunhry for it only when i look at the pic, so apetising one 🙂
Love your soup and story. It’s a tribute to your parents that they made you feel so loved and well taken care of.
Chris, you’re right. It really is a tribute.
It’s been a entire Winter and I still haven’t made potato soup, I need to make this recipe asap!
This was the first time I had made it all winter.
Sounds like perfect comfort food! Especially with your homemade bread! Delish.
Thanks, Liz.
We were a hamburger gravy family too–and lots of soup and other economical dishes. 😉 The soup looks delicious–I love potato soup–it’s so hearty and warming.
I am kind of surprised as to how many people ate hamburger gravy. 🙂
Nothing wrong with a good thick potato soup. I like the idea of the red potatoes.
Hamburger gravy! I remember that!!
Hamburger gravy may be the most overlooked comfort food!
your potato soup looks very comforting!
Thanks, guys.
This looks wonderful! I’m going to pin it – sounds like something we would love here. Hamburger gravy was because you were poor? we had our own cattle as well and I thought we made it because it tasted good! 🙂
Probably, we ate hamburger gravy because there was always an abundance of hamburger in the freezer. I don’t know why I don’t make it know because you are right—it tastes good!
[…] (fits right in with the whole Irish/St. Patrick’s Day thing, eh?), I found the awesome Okie Peasant Potato Soup right away, but that didn’t stop me from spending an awful lot of time going through […]
[…] (fits right in with the whole Irish/St. Patrick’s Day thing, eh?), I found the awesome Okie Peasant Potato Soup right away, but that didn’t stop me from spending an awful lot of time going through […]