Cheeseburger Soup

I've never made this one before, so I can't vouch for it yet. As I'm going pretty meatless, I'm going to take veggie "Meatballs" break them up and use them instead of the ground beef.



½ lbs. lean ground beef
½ c. chopped onion
¾ c. shredded carrots
¾ c. chopped celery
1 tsp. dried basil
1 tsp. dried parsley
6 c. chicken broth
2 lbs. potatoes, peeled and diced
3 Tbsp. butter or margarine
¼ c. all-purpose flour
¾ lbs. processed reduced-fat American cheese, cubed
1 ½ c. milk
¾ tsp. salt
½ tsp. pepper

Cook ground beef in a large pot over medium-high heat about 3 minutes, stirring until meat crumbles. Add onion and next 4 ingredients, and sauté 4 minutes or until beef is no longer pink. Drain well. Return beef mixture to pot.
Stir in chicken broth and potatoes. Bring to boil; cover, reduce heat, and simmer 10-12 minutes or until potatoes are tender.
Melt 3 Tbsp. butter in a nonstick skillet over medium heat. Gradually stir in flour, and cook, stirring constantly, 2 to 3 minutes or until flour is lightly browned.
Whisk flour mixture into simmering beef mixture; bring to a boil. Reduce heat, and simmer 6 minutes or until thickened.
Whisk in cheese and next 3 ingredients just until cheese melts.

Yield: 12 cups