Potato Soup & a Panini

My friend Jodi mentioned potato soup last week and I've been waiting for it to be cool enough to make it because it does sound so good!  Unfortunately I tried a new recipe from Paula Deen tonight and was disappointed.  :-(  I really should have stuck with my "usual" potato soup but I like to experiment too much.  Don't get me wrong, once we added some pepper and crackers it tasted good but it was way too thick for our tastes and the carrot seemed to almost overpower the potatoes.  So, if you like a really, really thick potato soup, try the recipe link above (oh, and I also added a can of chicken broth at the end and it was still too thick).

The panini (delicious, btw) that I made comes from the Grilled Cheese cookbook I ordered a little while ago.  I made the focaccia bread this afternoon (if anyone would like the recipe, just let me know - it's a simple bread machine dough) and the sandwich recipe is as follows:

Spinach and Dilled Havarti on Focaccia
(modified from Grilled Cheese by Marlena Spieler)

• 2 cloves garlic, chopped
• 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided
• 1 cup cooked, chopped spinach, drained and squeezed dry
• 4 pieces of focaccia, cut horizontally
• 8 ounces Havarti, sliced (The original recipe used dill Havarti)

1. In a heavy nonstick skillet over medium-low heat, warm the garlic in 1 tablespoon of the olive oil, then add the spinach and cook together a moment or two to warm through.
2. On the bottom layer of the focaccia, place a layer of spinach and then top with the cheese.  Place the top of the focaccia on and brush both sides with remaining olive oil.
3. Brown the sandwich in a panini press.

I have another recipe and photo for y'all - I came across this recipe on AllRecipes today - it looked interesting for a topping for the soup and I decided to try it out.  Holy cow are they good - Travis is requesting that we keep them in the house consistently for snacking.  You must try this.  :-)

Crackers a la Yvette
(courtesy of AllRecipes.com)

• 1 (16 ounce) package unsalted saltine crackers
• 1 cup canola oil
• 2 teaspoons crushed red pepper flakes
• 1 (1 ounce) package dry ranch salad dressing mix

1. Unwrap the crackers, and place them all into a 1 gallon size glass jar with a tight fitting lid. In a small bowl, stir together the canola oil, red pepper flakes, and ranch dressing mix. Pour over the crackers in the jar.
2. Close the lid tightly, and roll the jar every 5 minutes for about 1 hour to coat with the spice mixture. The longer these sit, the better they get!

**Notes, I used a 10 ounce package of oyster crackers and about 8 saltines (what I had left in an open package) - then cut the oil down to 2/3 cup.    I have to say I really liked the saltines better and will definitely make it the saltine way next time.