Cream Cheese Chicken and Vegetable Soup

I don't love the snow or the cold, but I love that it puts me in the mood to make soup! I tried a cream cheese chicken soup last year that just didn't have enough flavor so I was a little hesitant to try this recipe but it proved to be delicious! I love the smooth texture of this soup and unlike a lot of cream soups, it's really rather light on the stomach. I got this recipe from melskitchencafe.com. She has several great soup recipes.

Cream Cheese Chicken and Vegetable Soup

2 Tbsp butter

1 yellow onion, finely diced

2 cloves garlic, minced

2 stalks celery, diced

1/2 cup carrots, diced (about 2 regular or a handful of baby carrots)

3 cups chicken broth

2-3 potatoes, peeled and diced (I used red potatoes and left the skins on.)

1 cup milk

4 Tbsp flour

1 - 8oz. package regular or light cream cheese

2-3 (about 1 lb) boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cooked and diced

In a large pot, melt the butter and add the onion, garlic, celery and carrots. Saute, stirring often, for 3-4 minutes, until the veggies are slightly tender and the onions are translucent. Add the chicken broth and potatoes. Bring the soup to a simmer and cook, partially covered, until the potatoes are tender, about 10 minutes. In a liquid measuring cup, vigorously whisk the flour and milk together until smooth. Whisk the mixture into the soup, stirring quickly, and cook over medium heat for 3-4 minutes, until the soup begins to thicken slightly. Stir often to ensure the soup doesn’t burn. Soften the cream cheese in the microwave until it is very soft/melty. I usually place the unwrapped cream cheese on a plate and microwave it for one minute at 30% power. I like it really, really soft so it doesn’t leave lumps in the soup. Add the cream cheese to the soup in small tablespoon-size pieces. Let the pieces sit in the soup and warm through then whisk or stir the soup until the cream cheese melts and mixes in well. Add the cooked chicken and heat through. Season with salt and pepper. Serve.