Baked Potato Soup by Jackie

Ingredients:
1-(2lb.) bag hash brown potatoes, or 6 left over baked potatoes (remove skin and chop)
1/2 c. celery, chopped
1/2 c. chopped onions or green onions with tops thinly sliced
1 1/2 (14 1/2 oz.) cans chicken broth (21 3/4oz. total)
2 c. milk
1 garlic clove, pressed
3/4 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. ground black pepper
1 c. light sour cream
1 c. shredded cheddar cheese
1-8 oz. package diced ham or 6 slices of cooked and crumbled bacon

Assembly:
Place celery, chicken broth, milk, garlic, salt and pepper in a gallon size Ziploc freezer bag.  Add  potatoes and mix. Remove all air from bag, seal and lay flat on a cookie sheet to freeze. Place cheddar cheese into pint size freezer bag and freeze. Freeze ham or bacon in pint size freezer bag. Place all 3 bags into 2 gallon freezer bag to keep it all together.  Have container of sour cream in fridge to go with this recipe.

Serving Day:
Place thawed mixture from gallon freezer bag into 6 qt. pan. Add ham and sour cream and heat until boiling. Simmer for 15 minutes.  If using bacon, sprinkle on top of each serving, along with the cheese. 



* This recipe is adapted from Pampered Chef "Main Dishes" Cookbook and was a rerun of earlier recipe made by Wendy.