Beer Cheese Au Gratin Potatoes (not dairy free)

Since it is towards the end of the month we are trying to use up lots of items from our pantry and sometimes that means getting creative. I actually look forward to this time each month because often our best dinners and new recipes come out of random things in the kitchen. This morning I realized I had 6 potatoes, 1/2 lb ground sausage, 1/2 onion and some soy milk to use up. I knew I wanted to use up those potatoes before they started to sprout even though I knew I could freeze the sausage and onions for another month.

My next thought was to look in the pantry and see what I had Tastefully Simple wise - one of the best parts of the business is experimenting with the products and coming up with new recipes. It keeps me excited about the business and the opportunity that I can provide people. I found a sample pack of Bountiful Beer Cheese Soup - a product that I am still playing around with. I have found that when I want soup I can thin it out with a little extra beer or milk or leave it thick to pour over our Bountiful Beer Bread. The only ingredients it needs is beer and milk or you can always omit the beer and add the extra milk. I often don't suggest it to clients as just a soup but offer all the other ways you can use it. I was so happy to find another fun way to use the product today and can't wait to share it with my November hosts!

From the ingredients I had I did a 1/2 recipe, but listed below is for a full recipe since as a client you can only order it that way.


Beer Cheese Au Gratin Potatoes

Ingredients:
1 package Bountiful Beer Cheese Soup
1/2 cup beer
4 cups milk (I used soy)
1 lb ground sausage
1 onion, diced
10-12 potatoes, sliced thin

Directions:
* Thinly slice potatoes and place 1/2 of them in slow cooker.
* Cook ground sausage and onions - when browned add beer cheese soup mix with beer and milk. Whisk to mix and heat until it starts to thicken.
* Pour 1/2 of the mixture over potatoes and add rest of potatoes, then finish off by adding the rest of the soup sausage mix.
* Cook in your slow cooker on low for 5 hours or until potatoes are soft.

*** Please note this recipe is NOT dairy free - the Bountiful Beer Cheese Soup does contain a powdered cheese. I did the best I could by using soy milk instead of regular as I really wanted to experiment with a product my clients really love!