I found the recipe online, and we topped it with potato chips, pickles, and green onions. I'll be danged if it doesn't taste like a cheeseburger.
I'm happy to share a link to the recipe and my mods if anyone wants it.
Edit to add the recipe:
You can find the original recipe here: https://therecipecritic.com/cheeseburger-soup/
I made the following changes:
- No dried parsley - it is not very flavorful
- No dried basil - my family only likes it fresh
- 3 cups of potato, not 4 just because I was so sick of putting and fixing potatoes
- I used 6 oz. Velveeta and 8 oz. shredded mild cheddar for cheese - I wanted the emulsifiers in the Velveeta and also some real cheese; sharp cheddar would be good too, but my family does not like strong cheese
- Instead of 3/4 tsp. salt, I used 1 tsp. season salt too make up for the missing herbs
- No sour cream because my wife does not like it. It is completely unnecessary from a thickening perspective.
- I don't drain the ground beef. I just scoop it out of the pan and use the beef fat to cook my veggies. Why remove a flavorful fat to then add another for cooking? I was going to not use this extra butter in the recipe, but then I threw it in my roux because I am not a smart man. Or I love butter. The first is what actually happened, but the second is not really a lie.
For toppings, I had potato chips, diced kosher dill pickle, and green onions. The chips add crunch and a little fried/browned flavor. The pickles brighten the dish and drive home the cheeseburger flavor. The green onions add a little vegetal flavor and a mouth feel similar to lettuce.
I made a double batch, and it will feed my family of 4 for two dinners or more. This is a heavy soup.
I added the recipe to the post. We did have hard rolls with it, but I further hardened them out a little too much as I neglected them in the oven. My youngest still enjoyed hollowing out his roll and using it as a hand-held bread bowl.