Chunky Potato Soup

Ingredients
* 4 cups of red potatoes, cut into 1 inch cubes
* 3/4 cup finely chopped onion
* 3 tbsp butter
* 3 tbsp all purpose flour
* 1/8 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
* ground black pepper
* 3 cups milk
* 1/2 tsp sugar
* 4 oz shredded cheddar cheese
* 1 cup cubed cooked ham

Directions
1. Boil the potatoes until tender, about 9-10 minutes.
2. Before draining, reserve 1 cup of the liquid.  Then drain and set the potatoes aside.
3. Melt the butter in a large saucepan over medium heat.  Add the onion and cook, stirring frequently, until the onion is translucent and soft, but not brown.
4. Add the flour to the saucepan and season with red pepper flakes and black pepper. Cook 3--4 minutes.
5. Gradually add the potatoes and the 1 cup potato liquid.  Then add the milk and sugar, and stir well.  Add the cheese and ham.
6. Simmer over low heat for 30 minutes, stirring frequently.  Serve and enjoy!

Notes
I made this for dinner one night when we had a volleyball game to go to in the afternoon.  I prepped all the ingredients ahead of time, including cooking the potatoes. It was then really easy to throw together after we got home.  I had skim milk and 2% and used both, but I think any kind of milk will work.  I made popovers to go with it, and let the soup continue to simmer while the popovers cooked, so I probably simmered the soup 40-45 minutes.  Everyone loved this!