Loaded Garlic Mashed Potato Soup

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With the cold, wet weather, I really wanted some warm and creamy soup.  I love Potato soup.  This time I decided to kick it up a notch with some garlic.  It turned out great.  My daughter has eaten it probably 3 times this week, and took some to school.  You know it is good when your kids keep eating it.  This is so easy to fix.  I did mine in my crock pot. 

2 quarts of water
8-10 medium size potatoes
2 tbsp of minced garlic
salt
pepper
1 c half & half
2 tbsp cornstarch
Shredded cheese
Bacon (optional)
Chives (optional)

1. Cut your potatoes into cubes.  You need enough to where your water covers the potatoes by just a little bit.  
2. Place the water, potatoes, garlic, salt, and pepper in the crock pot.  You can add more or less garlic.  We love garlic.  So, I usually add more.
3. Let it all cook until potatoes are soft.  You can let cook all day while you are at work if you want.  Just put your crock pot on med or low.
4. When you get home or a couple of hours later, cook your bacon.
5. Break up your bacon into little bits.
6. Mix your half & half with the cornstarch.  You can substitute milk for the half & half, and/or flour for the cornstarch.
7. Once it is well mix, add to your potatoes.
8. My daughter want it creamy without chunks of potatoes.  So, I used a hand blender (immersion blender) to mash up the potatoes and to mix a little better.  If you like a chunkier potato soup, skip this step.
9. I was also very decadent an added the little pieces of bacon and a tad bit of bacon grease.
10. Add about a cup of your favorite shredded cheese.  I used a Mexican blend that I already had. 
11. Mix all of this up and let sit for about 5-10 minutes.
12. Serve with your favorite toppings.  As you can see I added more cheese and bacon bits to the top.

I hope you enjoy.  I know we did.  You should have enough for leftovers for lunches.  I love this because it is made with stuff I always have on hand (except the bacon).  It is cheap to make and everyone loves potato soup.

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