Baked Potato Soup

Ingredients:

• 3 bacon strips
• about a 1/8 tsp onion salt (you can use chopped onions instead, if you'd like - as many as you'd like.  I am not an onion fan.)
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 1/2 teaspoon dried basil  
• pinch red pepper flakes
• 1/2 teaspoon pepper
• 2 cans Swanson's chicken broth (We use the all natural kind with no msg)
• Red potatoes, diced (add as many as you'd like. We like ours with lots of potato.)
• 1 cup whipping cream
• Tabasco to taste (We do about 4-5 drops)
• Shredded Cheddar cheese

Preparation:

1. In a large saucepan, cook bacon until crisp. Set bacon aside and keep the bacon drippings in the pan.
2. Saute onion salt and garlic in the drippings until tender. Stir in flour, salt, basil and pepper; mix well.
3. Gradually add broth. Bring to boil; boil and stir for 2 minutes. 
4. Add the potatoes to the pot and boil them for about 12 minutes.
5. Add cream and Tabasco to the pot and stir to mix.
6. Serve;  Garnish with bacon and cheese.

Easy Scalloped Potatoes and Ham

Ingredients:

• 6 medium potatoes (or more if needed), cubed
• ham (as much as you wish), diced
• 1/4 cup butter
• 1 T dried onion flakes
• 1 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp pepper
• 1/4 cup flour
• 2 cups milk

Preparation:

1. Boil potatoes as you would normally. 
2. Meanwhile, in 4-cup glass measure, combine butter, onion, salt and pepper.  Cook in microwave on HIGH 1 to 1-1/2 minutes or until butter is melted.  Stir in flour; gradually add milk, stir until smooth.
3. Cook in microwave on MEDIUM 6-7 minutes, or until sauce is smooth; stir twice during cooking time.  
4. In 2-quart casserole dish, alternately layer potatoes, ham, and sauce forming three layers.  Cover with plastic wrap.  
5. Cook in microwave on MEDIUM heat 14-17 minutes.  
6. Let stand, covered, 5 minutes before serving. 

Pioneer Woman's Crash Hot Potatoes

Oh my goodness, so yummy.  Mine looked nothing like Pioneer Woman's though.  :)

Ingredients:

• new potatoes (we made a batch of 20)
• 3 T olive oil
• kosher salt (to taste)
• pepper (to taste)
• Italian seasoning (to taste) - PW uses rosemary

Preparation:

• Bring a pot of salted water to a boil; add potatoes and boil 10-15 minutes, until they can be easily pierced with a fork.
• Preheat the oven to 450.
• In a jelly roll pan, spray Pam to coat.  Place the potatoes on the pan, leaving space between them.
• Smash the potatoes down with a potato masher until it slightly mashes.  Rotate the masher and smash a bit more.  Brush the tops with olive oil.
• Sprinkle potatoes with salt, pepper and Italian seasoning.
• Bake at 450 for 20-25 minutes until golden brown.

Recipe modified from Pioneer Woman.