Loaded Baked Potato Soup

 

Happy first day of autumn, readers!  It's been a rainy day here in Michigan, which was a wonderful reason for me to put a big pot of soup on this afternoon!

We have struggled with some major sickness in our household over the past week.

It trickled through each family member (including me) and even struck my hubby (who NEVER gets sick).  Visits to the doctor for all three kids, waiting in line at the pharmacy, trips out for more tissues and NyQuil, missed days of school and having half of my medicine cabinet contents lined up on the kitchen counter made for one long, trying week.

Thankfully, the kids and I are on the down-side of it.  I'm hoping my dear husband can catch up on some rest this weekend and kick all that is ailing him right now!

Needless to say, you may (or may not) have noticed my absence from the blogging world recently.  I wasn't online much during my sick days in bed ... nor was I cooking much.  Thank goodness for some made-in-advance casseroles and slow cooker meals that I had on hand in the freezer! 

I was happy to be feeling a lot better and to get back into the kitchen today to make this tasty, comforting Loaded Baked Potato Soup.  This was my first time making potato soup this way and the whole family agreed that this is a winner!

As a matter of fact, as I sit here late at night typing this post ... my mind keeps drifting off to thoughts of the leftovers stashed away in the fridge!  I'm not sure I want to wait until lunch tomorrow to have another bowl!

Ingredients:

1 lb. bacon, cut into small pieces
10 - 12 medium-to-large potatoes, peeled and cut into large cubes
1 onion, peeled and diced finely
5 cups chicken stock or broth (or 5 cups water with 5 chicken bouillon cubes)
4 tablespoons butter
4 tablespoons flour
1 1/2 - 2 cups milk
1 cup shredded cheese (plus more for garnish)
4 - 5 green onions, cleaned and sliced
Salt
Pepper
Sour cream

Directions:

In a large stock pot, cook bacon until crisp. Remove with a slotted spoon and allow to drain on paper towel. Set aside.

Drain all but two or three tablespoons of bacon grease from the pot. Cook the onions in the remaining bacon grease for about 3 minutes or until tender.

Add potatoes and chicken stock to pot. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to medium and simmer about 15 - 20 minutes, until potatoes are tender. With a slotted spoon, remove two scoops of potatoes. Place in a bowl and mash with a fork. Set aside.

In a small pan set to medium-low, melt butter. Stir in flour and cook for 1 - 2 minutes. Whisk in milk, bring just to a boil and simmer until thickened. Slowly stir in to stock pot. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to low and simmer. Stir mashed potatoes back into pot.

Add 1 cup of shredded cheese, about half of the bacon and half of the sliced green onions to pot. Add pepper and salt, to taste.

Turn off burner and allow soup to sit for about five minutes.

Ladle soup into individual bowls and top with some shredded cheese, bacon, green onions and sour cream.