Roasted Potato and Fennel Soup

Winter is just about to let go of my area and allow spring to take over, and for that reason, I'm getting all of my hearty soups in while I can.  I look forward to spring, but with it comes the lack of desire to make thick, hearty soups.  I know I won't be tasting them for a while, so I make a lot of soups come February and March.  I made this one last month, but just haven't gotten around to posting it yet.

There's something about this soup that I just love.  I think it's because it's not just another "loaded baked potato" soup, with cheddar and bacon sprinkled on top.  It could also be that I adore fennel.

The first time I really found fennel was in a fennel slaw on top of salmon at my favorite restaurant, and I've been hooked ever since.  So when I saw this combination of roasted potatoes and fennel I jumped for joy, and jumped into the kitchen ready to cook. 

Roasted Carrot and Apple Soup

One day, I bought a 2 lb. bag of organic carrots, thinking that I would purée them for them for the baby lady.  The next day, I got my box of mixed vegetables from Washington's Green Grocer, and that contained about another pound of organic carrots.  Then, the baby lady quit eating purées.  Cold.  No more, she cried (which really just sounded like a baby wailing)!  So there I was, stuck with three pounds of carrots, and I had no idea what to do with them.

The baby lady seems to have decided that she loves soup, and because carrots are good for the eyes and because I desperately needed to rid myself of some carrots, I decided that carrot soup was on the menu for that night.  I had some parsnips on hand from forever ago that I was going to toss soon, so I added those, and added about half of a purple onion.  I think it turned out wonderfully and so did the tiny lady who demanded it from her high chair.

Serves 4 as a main dish

Cheddar Corn Chowder

I make everything you find on this blog...except this.  My wonderful husband decided to cook one night and let me relax while he did so.  B made this soup and it's now a favorite.  It's rich and hearty, and also sweet from the corn.  It's almost like loaded baked potato soup with corn.  It also makes enough to provide leftovers and is therefore bound to become a frequent meal in our house.  Oh!  I "made" the bacon.  That counts as cooking, right?

Serves 4 hungry adults.