Potato Soup

This is a creamy, hearty soup that will satisfy your need for home cooking. Don't forget the fluffy BISCUITS on the side. Is it bad manners to dip your bread in your soup? Who cares!

6 c. water
6 potatoes, scrubbed and diced
1 onion, chopped
1 1/2 c. chopped carrots
4 stalks celery, chopped
4 slices bacon, crumbled OR
1 c. ham, diced
1 (14-oz.) can corn, drained
1/2 c. flour
2 c. milk or cream
1 T. salt
1 T. sugar
1/4 tsp. thyme
1/4 tsp. sage
1/8 tsp. pepper

Bring water to boil in large soup pot over HI heat. As water heats up, prepare vegetables and bacon. Add potatoes, onions, carrots, and celery to water. Boil until potatoes are tender, but firm, checking with a fork. Add bacon and corn. In jar or cup with lid, shake milk with flour until smooth. Stir slowly into soup and allow to thicken. Add salt, sugar, thyme, sage, and pepper. Stir and turn off heat. *For speedier preparation, substitute frozen peas and carrots for celery and carrots.