Cheesy Chicken Soup

Cold winter day with crappy weather and terrible icy, snowy cold temperatures call for soup. I have leftover chicken so what to do but make the family's favorite soup? Stopped by the store on the way home to pick up 2 zucchini and a package of shredded Triple Cheddar.


I generally don't start this way but I had bacon in the fridge, how bad can that be? asks Ina.

Add to that some 2% Velveeta (well, someone has to justify it's existence and it makes for a creamy soup), a bit of chicken broth and some zucchini and carrots. Sounds like a winner to me. Added a few baking powder biscuits since I spied some leftover buttermilk in the fridge. I love biscuits with sour cream on them. My weakness.

2 strips of bacon
2 T butter
4 T flour
1 large can Chicken broth
1/2 pound velveeta chunked
1 pkg Triple cheddar shredded
2-3 c milk
2 Cooked chicken breasts, chunked or shredded or a rotisserie chicken
2 zucchini  chunked
a handful of baby carrots rough chopped
1 or 2 t Lowry's seasoned salt
1 T dry mustard

This is a pantry soup so I use what I have, hence the baby carrots (sometimes I use canned carrots)  etc.  They used to make it at the hospital cafeteria and that's were I lifted the recipe from but after all these years I am not sure what theirs had in it anymore.

The bacon's is optional but I fried 2 strips in a large marmite (stockpot), till crisp then crumbled it and set it aside. To the remaining fat I added 2 T butter, once melted I threw in the flour and made the roux. I added the chicken broth and let it thicken up a bit then added the cheeses. Add the milk. Gotta watch it as it scorches easily so NO boiling. Added my spices, chicken, bacon and veggies then let it simmer, covered but no boiling. Boiling now will ruin the texture but it will taste OK but will be grainy. Something about it's creaminess that makes it great though if you do it right.  If its too thin for your taste...thicken with a buerre mannie or some cornstarch and milk.