Bacon Cheddar Ranch Potato Soup

This is a great slow cooker recipe.  It has my husband's three favorite ingredients: bacon, ranch and cheese.  Amazingly, it's only 176 calories per serving and a serving is about a cup and a half of soup.  So you could add a topping or two without any guilt.    I like my soup a little less chunky, so about half an hour before serving I scooped out the diced potato and mashed it a bit.  Depending how thick you like your soup, you may need to whisk a little flour into the pot.  You can reduce the sodium count a bit by using lower sodium beef broth and ranch mix.

Ingredients

2 medium potatoes, diced
1 12-oz can fat free evaporated milk
1 cup beef broth
3 cups water
1 packet ranch mix
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
1 cup onions, diced
3 cloves garlic, minced
6 slices center cut bacon, diced

Directions

In a large pan, saute the bacon, garlic and onions until the bacon is starting to brown.
In a slow cooker, whisk the ranch mix into the evaporated milk, then combine with the water and beef broth. Add the potatoes, cheese, and bacon mixture to the slow cooker. Cook on low for eight to ten hours.
You can top the soup with some onion straws, parsley, a little sour cream or whatever else sounds good to you. (Extras aren't included in nutrition facts.)

Nutritional Info
• Servings Per Recipe: 6
• Amount Per Serving
• Calories: 176.3
• Total Fat: 1.7 g
• Cholesterol: 10.9 mg
• Sodium: 830.8 mg
• Total Carbs: 25.2 g
• Dietary Fiber: 1.3 g
• Protein: 14.7 g