Slow Cooker Potato Soup

First, a little Mini update.  Mini girl is now 8 months old.  She weighs in at about 13.5 lbs and is still wearing 3-6 month clothes.  She can sit up and wave, she recognizes her name and the names of people in our family, and loves to be outside.  It's amazing to see similarities between my girls at this age and I've been feeling sentimental about my girls as baby lately, so here are some photos of all three at 8 months.

First, the youngest (and the most recent photos):

Next, middle when she was 8 months old (and already crawling everywhere):

And finally, from back in 2008, Big at 8 months old:

This is a super easy crockpot soup - you chop some stuff, put it in the crockpot, and turn it on.  There might be more depth of flavor if you browned the onion and leek first (maybe with garlic and olive oil?) but I threw it all in there raw and it turned out great without the extra step.

How big you chop the pieces depends on whether you plan on blending the soup or not . . . if you're going to leave it chunky, dice the potatoes, carrot, celery, and onion smaller.  Make sure you wash the leek well before adding to the soup.  I found that with low-sodium broth and the milk, I needed to add some salt before serving it.

Cream of Potato Soup (serves 8)

2 lbs red potatoes, cut into pieces
1 carrot, diced
2 celery ribs, diced
1 leek, sliced
1 onion, diced
4 cups vegetable or chicken broth
2 cups water
2 tsp salt (more to taste)
pepper to taste
1 bay leaf
1 cup evaporated milk

Optional garnish:
cooked chopped bacon
chives
fresh parsley
grated cheese

Put everything but the evaporated milk in the slow cooker.  Cook for 3-4 hours on high or 6-8 hours on low (I did 2 hours on high and then turned it to low for 3 more hours).  Add the evaporated milk and mash up the soup with a potato masher (or for a smoother consistency, use a blender).  Taste and adjust seasonings.  Bring it back to a simmer (the milk & blending will have cooled it off) and serve with bacon, chives, parsley, and cheese to garnish (if you want to).