Potato-Bacon Chowder - cooking recipe

Ingredients

2 tablespoons butter
1 cup onion, diced
1/2 cup celery, diced
6 cups potatoes, peeled, diced (about 2 1/2 lbs.)
32 ounces chicken broth
8 ounces light cream cheese
1/2 lb bacon, cooked, chopped
16 ounces milk
2 tablespoons parsley, fresh, chopped
salt and pepper

Preparation

Prepare vegetables; dice onion and celery. Peel and dice potatoes into small pieces.
Saute onion and celery in butter about 8 minutes over low heat until softened.
Add potatoes and chicken broth. Simmer 15-20 minutes until potatoes are tender.
Add cream cheese to soup (Hint: pour some of the hot soup into a mixing bowl with cream cheese; whisk to blend, and then pour this back into the soup pot).
Add chopped bacon and milk (if you like a richer soup, use Half-n-Half instead of milk).
Option - add a pkg. of frozen broccoli, cooked, drained and chopped, or a package of frozen corn.
Season with salt and pepper.
Serve with additional toppings (cheese, chopped green onions, bacon).