Rob and I are total Foodies. We love good food, good drinks, and good atmosphere. Unfortunately, I came down with Mast Cell Activation Disorder around 2010 or so. I started developing random hives, angioedema (Face, eye, mouth and throat swelling) and anaphylaxis. We found out after many years of trial and error that it was autoimmune, and even though I am well controlled on my medication regimen, I still cannot tolerate wheat at all, or eggs and soy in more than small amounts. (I also develop random allergies to smells and cleaners, so I have to be extremely careful what I use. ) This means it is hard for me to find restaurants that can cater to my needs. I thought I would share my favorite recipes here for those who might need to have a new G-Free recipe or for those who might just want an easy on the road recipe. These are tried and true, rich and delicious, and our very favorites. (Just don’t ask about calories…)
Gluten Free Easy Cheesy Potato Soup
*32 oz Heavy Whipping Cream
*1 Brick Cream Cheese
*32 oz SHARP cheddar cheese. (Don’t use mild or medium. Sharp is needed to cut the cream cheese.)
*3 pounds of red potatoes chunked. (We leave the skin on.)
*1/2 of a large onion. (We use vidalia, but any will do.)
*Garlic (We use granulated, but you can use a couple of real cloves if you are a purist.)
*Pepper (any pepper will work. White pepper is smokier. Black or red is sharper.)
*Kosher Salt (I use kosher or Himalayan salt because I avoid iodine due to my Hashimoto’s disease.)
*Chopped Green Onions
*Crumbled Bacon (Freshly cooked is best.)
*Sour cream (Optional)
Wash and dice the potatoes into 1 inch cubes. (I really don’t measure this. It just seemed recipe appropriate! :D) Dice or slice your onion depending on your preference. We dice ours small. Dump into your 8 quart insta-pot. Add enough water to cover everything and float the onions. Season with salt, pepper, and garlic. (We just give a few shakes of each.) Put the lid on the instapot. Set the vent to seal. Select pressure cook for 10 minutes. Once it is through cooking, manually release the pressure. (If you do not feel comfortable with this, set your cook time for 8 minutes instead and let the pressure release on it’s own.) Strain the potatoes over a large bowl. (You will need this water so don’t pour it out!)
Place the cream cheese and half of the heavy cream into the instapot and turn on the saute’ function. Constantly stir so it does not stick. Once this is smooth, add the remaining heavy cream and the cheddar cheese. Stir constantly until smooth. Cancel the saute’ function and then add in your boiled water until the sauce is the consistency you want. I like to add about 4 cups of water to the soup. This also returns your spices to the soup. (Rob doesn’t like to add any water back, resulting in more of a cheese sauce instead of a soup…). Add in your potatoes and gently stir in so as not to make them into mush. Top with bacon pieces, more cheese, green onions, sour cream, etc. We also like to shake a little Old Bay on there for an extra kick…