A cold day calls for potato soup

Dear Heloise: You had a recipe for a potato soup that was easy to make and really good on a cold day. Would you reprint it for your readers?— Louisa N., Missoula, Mont.

Louisa, I’d be delighted to pass this recipe along: MEME’S POTATO SOUP 4 medium potatoes, peeled and cubed

1 small onion, chopped 1 tablespoon shortening 1 cup water 2 cups milk 3/4 teaspoon salt Dash of pepper

Cook potatoes, onion, shortening and water in a large pot until potatoes are soft. Add remaining ingredients and simmer for 20 to 30 minutes. Makes 4 servings.

FYI: If you need to thicken a soup, you can add about 1/4 cup uncooked oatmeal.—Heloise

AN ICE-CUBE IDEA

Dear Heloise: I like to make a big pot of tea, but I hate to throw out the leftover tea. I pour the remainder into ice-cube trays and freeze it. Then I can use the cubes when I serve iced tea, and the flavor won’t be diluted. Sometimes I add a little curl of lemon or a mint leaf to dress up the ice cube.—Sarah B., Hartsville, S.C. COOKING WITH WINE Dear Heloise: There are several recipes in my mother’s old cookbook that call for wine, but can I cook a recipe without putting wine in it?— Meg Y., Clayton, Mo.

Meg, most of the alcohol is burned off by the heat of cooking, but if it’s the taste rather than the alcohol you object to, many recipes require just enough wine to enhance the flavor of the dish but not overpower the flavors. You can eliminate the wine from your recipe if you prefer.—Heloise