While planning meals for the week, I decided to try a few new recipes. I’ll admit that Mr. Handsome was a bit nervous when he heard, but he has been pleased with the results so far. Two nights ago, I experimented with potato soup, and we both loved it.
Picture a loaded baked potato in soup form, and that’s exactly what this recipe tastes like. It takes a bit of time to make but is so worth it. This soup is creamy and wonderfully flavorful. It’s not an especially healthy meal, although it does contain a decent amount of vegetables and has less fat than conventional potato soup. If you want to make it healthier, you can substitute some of the potato for more yellow squash. You can also use more milk and less heavy cream, but expect a runnier soup if you make that change.
Baked Potato Soup
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups celery, diced
- 2 cups carrots, diced
- 1 medium onion, diced
- 1 yellow squash, peeled and diced
- 1/4 tsp salt (plus more to taste)
- 1/4 tsp black pepper (plus more to taste)
- 6 cups potatoes, peeled and diced
- 5 Tbsp olive oil
- 9 cups broth Chicken or veggie
- 5 slices bacon Optional, but adds flavor
- 3/4 cup milk
- 1/2 cup heavy cream
- 4 Tbsp flour I use whole wheat
- 1 Tbsp sour cream
- 3/4 cup sharp cheddar cheese, shredded
- 3/4 cup green onions, chopped
Instructions
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Add celery, carrots, onion, and squash to a large saucepan/soup pot. Saute, stirring frequently, in 3 Tbsp olive oil, adding more oil if needed to prevent pot from becoming dry. Stir in 1/4 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper.
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After about 5 minutes (once veggies have begun to soften), stir in potatoes and an additional 2 Tbsp olive oil. Cook, stirring frequently, for about 10 minutes (until you can easily mash the potatoes and veggies with a wooden spoon).
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Add broth, and bring to a healthy boil. Cook, stirring frequently, for 15 minutes.
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Meanwhile, cook your bacon in the microwave, until slightly crunchy but not burnt. Remove, and allow to cool for a few minutes before chopping. Save 1 Tbsp bacon grease, and add it to the pot of soup. It's optional, but it adds flavor.
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In a small saucepan, whisk together milk and heavy cream over low/medium heat. Slowly add flour, whisking constantly until mixture starts to thicken and bubble. Remove from heat. Quickly whisk in sour cream, and stir mixture into soup.
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Stir in cheese and 1/2 cup green onions.
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Turn down burner heat to low, and use an immersion blender/Bamix to remove lumps from soup. You can also use a regular blender, if your blender is rated for hot liquids. When using an immersion blender, make sure the blade is fully immersed before turning it on, and make sure the device is completely turned off before removing it from the soup. This prevents hot liquid from flying everywhere.
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Remove soup from heat, and stir in the majority of bacon slices. Add additional salt and pepper to taste. Serve in bowls, garnished with remaining green onion and bacon.
Recipe Notes
Recipe makes approximately 3 quarts of soup
Look good, but I have some questions:
Step 3, where you bring the mixture to a “healthy” boil – Don’t you need to turn the heat down before you cook for an additional 15 minutes? Otherwise, you’d boil away all your soup.
Step 4 – How do you reserve a Tbsp. of bacon grease if you cook the bacon in a microwave? I always cook it on paper towels, which absorb the grease. How did you microwave your bacon so it didn’t spatter and you had the reserved grease?
Step 5 – Wondering what the purpose is for the small amount of sour cream (flavor? texture?), and if it can be omitted, or used as a topping instead?
How much soup does this make?
What is the source for this recipe, or is it your original recipe?
Hi there,
When I bring the mixture to a boil, I boil it for 15 minutes, stirring frequently. The boiling helps thicken it, which is essential for this soup. Keep an eye on it so it doesn’t turn into a “rolling boil,” and stir frequently to prevent the soup from heating unevenly.
I cook my bacon on paper towels in the microwave. A bacon cooker would be great, but paper towels work, too. If there isn’t enough grease left on the plate, you can gently squeeze out the paper towels. (Make sure your paper towels don’t have any color or prints on them.)
The sour cream adds a bit of flavor, but you’re welcome to omit it or use it as a topping.
The recipe makes approximately 3 quarts of soup (about 12 servings). That info was added into the recipe but for some reason didn’t show up the first time. Still getting the hang of WordPress. 🙂
The recipe is my own.
Have a great day,
Ellie
Thank You for the delicious recipe.
Marilyn
Looks very tastey and nutritious! Lately I discovered canned organic coconut milk and cream too. And have been substituting it in coffee and tea. It has a good flavour. If people do not want cream and milk, I guess coconut milk would taste OK in a soup like this. But if want to do this, try on a small portion, that’s a lot of good ingredients to mess up on!
That’s a good suggestion. Coconut milk could end up being really tasty in this recipe! But I agree about trying it with a small portion. I love using coconut oil on popcorn instead of butter. Gives it a great taste.
Ellie
I can’t wait to make this!! Thank you so much, Ellie for sharing it! 🙂
Thanks for sharing this! The changes to the blog look great! I’m in Montgomery, AL this week. I plan to visit the MLK family home thanks to your blog. Thank you for sharing about your trip. I have lots of family here, but I didn’t know about it being open to tour.😊
Glad you like the new blog! Hope you’re able to visit the MLK home. It’s a great tour. Be sure and let me know what you think of it.
Ellie