O'Nowlan Potato Soup

I adapted this potato soup to be vegetarian and named it after James O'Nowlan - my great, great, great, great....grandfather who came over from Ireland around 1700 as an indentured servant. (He eventually dropped the "O" and changed the spelling of our family name to Nowlin.) It's cheap, it's hearty and one of my favorite meals on a cold day.  I love to serve this soup with crusty bread.
Happy St. Patty's Day!

1-2 carrots peeled and diced
1 small onion diced
1-2 garlic cloves
1 T Dijon mustard
2 T vegetable oil
A few sprigs of rosemary, chopped
1 box of vegetable stock (or 2 cans)
3-4 russet potatoes, peeled and diced
1 can cream of celery soup
1 cup milk
chives, chopped

Heat oil in a large soup pot. Add carrots, onion, garlic and rosemary (salt and pepper to taste). Saute for a few minutes while onions and garlic "sweat" and carrots get a little tender. Add dijon mustard and mix through. Add the vegetable stock and bring to a boil. Sprinkle the the diced potatoes with salt and pepper and add to pot. (If your soup seems too chunky at this point you may need to add more broth. Alternatively, you could use veggie bouillon and water).  Return to boil. Let the potatoes cook until tender  - about 20 minutes. Reduce heat to low. Lightly mash the potatoes  with the back of your spoon so some will fall apart and some stay chunky. In a separate mixing bowl, mix celery soup and milk together until creamy. Add the creamy soup mixture to your soup pot and mix through. Do not boil. Taste for flavor and add salt and pepper as needed. Serve immediately with chopped chives.

Carnivore's tip: This soup was originally made with a pork product. Sausage, ham and bacon can all be used. To make with meat, brown your meat prior to the first step and skip the veg oil if your meat makes enough drippings to cook your veggies in. Remove the meat from the pot while you boil your potatoes and add it back in at the end.