SNOW! And soup recipe

IT'S SNOWING!!!!

Stick, damn you, stick! If the schools close tomorrow, we get leave with pay. ^__^

I think I'll do a snow dance tonight or something. Improvise!

Last night I made an improvised soup and it's probably one of my best so far. It's a potato and sausage soup, and I'll do my best to give vegetarian/vegan alternatives below.

I took some mashed potatoes I had left over in the fridge to start with, so some of this was already prepped ahead of time and I didn't have the sausage I wanted, but it turned out for the best when I found a solution the flavor problem. Here goes...

2 sausages* (something that crumbles well and has a savory flavor, I used Polish sausage because it was all I had, but I'd recommend a different one that can be crumbled and browned.)
3-5 yukon gold potatoes (medium)
whipping cream*
butter*
chicken broth*
dried rosemary
dried thyme
garlic powder
sea salt
fresh ground pepper
dried cranberries/craisins

Slice potatoes into disks with the skin on and steam for half an hour or until softened. Mash, leaving small lumps and mix with butter and 1/4 to a 1/2 a cup of cream, add salt and garlic to taste and put in a large pot. Add in a large can (about 32 oz? "family size") of chicken broth and when empty and half as much water. Crumble and brown sausage in a separate pan and add to soup. Sprinkle in dried rosemary and thyme and grind peppercorns over the pot liberally. Add in garlic powder and sea salt to taste and simmer for twenty minutes. Five minutes before stirring, increase heat to medium and pour in a small amount of cream until broth is a pale yellow colour with a thin, milky texture. Serve in large bowls and stir into each bowl a small handful (about 1/8 cup) of craisins.

Like all soups, this is even better the next day. If the soup is allowed to simmer longer, the herbs will have a better chance of absorbing the broth and flavoring it further, so if you can, simmer for an hour and a half, but twenty minutes will suffice if you're in a pinch. ^__^

*Alternatives; Replace__with__:

Sausage / Soysage or a crumbling grain meat sausage (needs a savory flavor)
Whipping cream / Silk Soy Creamer or other thick soy cream alternative
Butter / for potatoes: vegan alternative; for broth: truffle-infused olive oil (for the right flavor)
Chicken Broth / Mushroom Broth w/ Truffle-infused Olive Oil