Recently, I decided to just work up a recipe myself that tastes good, is easy and quick to make, that (thanks to a misguided DIL) can be tweaked to not overly offend the delicate sensibilities of a vegetarian (sorry, potatoes), and that incorporates ... wait for it ... wait for it ... ACTUAL BAKED POTATOES! Genius, I know ...

Loaded Baked Potato Soup (with vegetarian option)
MBM original recipe – with consideration of a few good examples from, e.g., Food Network (Guy Fieri), Cook’s Country, Salt & Lavender, Damn Delicious, etc.
Course: Lunch, Dinner, Entrée
Cuisine: American
Makes: 4 generous meal-size servings
Takes: About an hour for baking potatoes and frying bacon. 30 minutes or so for the potatoes to cool down a bit. Another 30 minutes for prep and making the soup. 2 hours total (NOTE: The potatoes and the bacon can be prepared well in advance (just remember to keep the bacon grease))
Ingredients (Vegetarian version: look for “Vsub” in the notes)
- Approx. 2½ lb., 1.13 kg. (6 med. or 4 lg.) Baking Potatoes – Idaho or Russet
- 6 Slices Bacon (Vsub: use just butter and maybe add a bit of smoked cheddar or gouda cheese)
- Butter – salted is ok (Land O Lakes preferred) to supplement the bacon drippings if needed
- 1 small Sweet Onion (approx. 4 oz., 125g) – chopped
- 1 clove Garlic – finely chopped (OPTIONAL)
- ½ cup, 120 ml All Purpose Flour
- 6 total cups, 1.4L of rich, flavorful milk mixture:
- 3 to 6 cups, 0.7 to 1.4L of Milk
- Up to 1 cup, 240 ml of Chicken Broth (A full can is OK here) (Vsub: veg. broth)
- Up to 1 cup, 240 ml of Heavy Cream
- 1-2 tsp, 5-10 ml Fresh Thyme – finely chopped (Substitute: ½ to 1 tsp if dried)
- 5-6 oz., 150-270g Cheddar Cheese – white, yellow, sharp, etc., grated
- Kosher Salt
- Black Pepper – freshly ground
- 1 Small Bunch Fresh Chives – finely sliced for garnish (Substitute: 1-2 scallions)
- Red Bell Pepper – raw (meh) or sauteed & seasoned, chopped for garnish (OPTIONAL)
- Sour Cream – for garnish (OPTIONAL)
Prep and Bake the Potatoes as You Normally Would (here, I’m using an Air Fryer)
- Clean and trim, dry thoroughly.
- Rub generously with olive oil and Kosher salt.
- Pierce multiple times with knife.
- Preheat air fryer to 350ºF (175ºC) for 5 to 8 min. (If no preheat, just add 3-4 min. cook time).
- Cook: 350ºF(175ºC)x45 to 60 min; turn every 15 min.
- Final temp: 200ºF(93ºC) internal – (extend cooking time as needed to reach final temp). When done, the tip of a paring knife should go through the potatoes easily.
- Set aside until cool enough to handle.
- Peel the potatoes, discard the skins, and put the pulp in a separate bowl.
- Smash with a potato masher or the back of a wooden spoon, leaving them a little bit chunky.
- Season lightly with salt and pepper (remember, there’s a lot of salt in the bacon) and set aside.
- Fry the bacon in the soup pot as you normally would until done and just starting to get crisp … but not too crisp. Overdone bacon makes it taste too heavy.
- Leave the drippings in the pot; remove the bacon and drain on paper towels.
- Cut the bacon into lardons (thin strips) and set aside.
- If more fat is needed, add butter as required into the bacon drippings. If you have too much fat, spoon out the excess, leaving about 2 TBSP (Vsub: use just butter + smoked cheese)
- Sauté the chopped onion in the bacon drippings until tender, about 5 minutes.
- Add the thyme and optional chopped garlic to the onions and stir until fragrant.
- Add the flour into the pot and stir to combine.
- Cook over low-medium heat, without adding color, until the flour and drippings have combined, about 1 minute.
- Pour in the milk mixture while you whisk.
- Cook over medium heat until bubbly and thickened, stirring frequently, about 15-20 minutes. If the soup gets too thick, add more milk mixture, stirring constantly.
- Add the smashed potatoes to the mixture. Note: If you want the soup a bit smoother, an immersion blender works well here.
- Add the bacon (reserving a bit for garnish) and 1 cup of the grated cheese (plus smoked cheese if using).
- Season again … (but only if needed … so be careful) to taste with salt and pepper.
- Stir until the cheese has melted then remove from heat.
- Ladle the soup into bowls, optionally top with a dollop of sour cream and red bell pepper, and garnish with remaining bacon bits, grated cheese, and chives/scallions. Serve immediately while very hot.
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