Tastefully Simple Perfectly Potato Cheddar Soup Mix Review

I'm not the first person to get carried away with rhapsodizing about soup.  Lewis Carroll, creator of "Alice in Wonderland" and "Alice Through the Looking Glass", came up with a character who recited a whole poem dedicated to "Soup of the evening, beautiful soup!"  As you guys may have guessed by now, I am an enthusiastic eater and tend to enjoy the things I try but there is something really special about Tastefully Simple Perfectly Potato Cheddar Soup Mix. 

The preparation of this soup couldn't be easier although I might not recommend it to a novice cook because without proper vigilance and attention, this product could easily stick to the pan and "scorch" during the simmering process.  You whisk (a slotted spoon works just as well) the mix into six cups of cold water, bring to a boil, reduce the heat, and simmer uncovered for 30 minutes, stirring now and then.  It is almost magical the way this starts out as a thin liquid transformed into a lovely smooth thick soup.  Just when you think the transformation is complete, suddenly there are lovely small chunks of potatoes, onions, and carrots in play, making this a hearty lunch or supper enough to satisfy anyone.  (Care must be taken to not only turn off the heat but move the soup to a cool burner to avoid scorching.)  For $7.49, a person can end up with six servings and Tastefully Simple also sells this product at a discount in a two-pack.

Tastefully Simple Perfectly Potato Cheddar Soup Mix contains ingredients which include dehydrated potatoes, creamer, cheese powders, blue cheese, powdered chicken fat and broth, dehydrated carrots and onions, non-fat milk, butter, sugar and spices.  (For a more complete list, see TastefullySimple.com.) 

STATS:

One third cup dry (one cup prepared according to directions) is a single serving containing 190 calories with 80 calories from fat.  There are 9 grams Total Fat, 3 grams Saturated Fat, zero Trans Fat, 10 mg. Cholesterol, 800 mg. Sodium, 24 grams Total Carbs, 1 gram Dietary Fiber, 3 grams Sugars and 4 grams Protein.  Also included are 2% (D.V.) Vitamin A, 6% Vitamin C, 10% Calcium, and 2% Iron.  Fat and sodium tend to be a bit high but there are easy ways around that.

TASTE TIP:

Tastefully Simple Perfectly Potato Cheddar Soup Mix is wonderful by itself but was born to be augmented by the addition of ingredients which enhance not only the taste but also the nutritional value and dilute down the salt present in a serving.  I bought this product from This2ShallPass19 who has achieved great success by adding chopped cooked chicken breast or broccoli during the simmering phase.  Along those same lines, I tried something basically the same but just a tad different -- a layered soup. 

Instead of adding anything else during the simmering, I steamed some Birdseye Broccoli Florets separately.  Then I filled my largest soup mug half full with Perfectly Potato Cheddar Soup and topped that with a layer of steamed broccoli and a sprinkling of Kraft Three Cheese Crumbles.  After heating the mug in the microwave enough to melt and bubble the cheese, everything had blended together but I feel that "layering" helped to preserve the character, integrity and taste of each ingredient and the soup itself.  It was almost like a whole supper in a bowl of soup which really was downright beautiful!

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