Creamy Potato Soup

I love when my sisters send me delicious recipes they’ve tried! This is one of them, and it is a winner in our home. My husband said it’s one of the best things he’s ever tasted. He does love bacon, but still loved the soup without any bacon sprinkled on top.

My little boy also gobbled up his soup so fast, two nights in a row. He can usually be pretty picky, so this creamy potato soup really made dinner less stressful for those two evenings.

Creamy Potato Soup Recipe

Ingredients (about 12 servings):

• 10 slices thin bacon, cut in 1 inch strips
• 1 medium yellow onion, diced
• 3 medium/large carrots, washed and diced
• 3 stalks celery, diced
• 6 medium Russet potatoes, peeled and diced
• 8 C. low sodium chicken broth
• 3 Tbsp. all-purpose flour
• 1 C. milk
• 1/2 C. heavy cream
• 1/2 tsp. salt, plus more to taste
• 1/4 tsp. ground black pepper, plus more to taste
• optional (and recommended): minced fresh parsley and grated cheddar cheese to garnish

Instructions:

1. I really recommend chopping/dicing all the vegetables before cooking the bacon. Set the onions, carrots, and celery in one bowl and the potatoes in another so they are ready to cook.
2. Heat a large soup pot to medium/medium-high heat and add the bacon pieces. Cook until crisp. (I cooked without a lid for the first few minutes and then added a lid to help them cook faster.) With a slotted spoon, remove bacon from pot (you can put a paper towel over a bowl or plate and set the cooked bacon on that). Pour out most of the bacon fat, but leave about a tablespoon or so in the pot.
3. Turn the heat to medium-high and add the diced onion, carrots, and celery. Stir and cook for 5 minutes or so. Add the diced potatoes, salt and pepper, and cook for another 5 minutes. Stir occasionally. It may help to put a lid on the pot for a few minutes to help steam the potatoes.
4. Pour in the broth and bring to a gentle boil. Let simmer for 10 minutes, or until potatoes are becoming tender. In a small bowl, whisk together the flour and milk. Pour into soup and let cook another 5 minutes.
5. Blend about 1/2 of the soup until smooth, then return to the soup pot with the chunkier soup. Use caution while blending the hot soup. You can let it cool down a bit first if you want. Don’t fill up the blender all the way because there will be a lot of steam. You can blend a little at a time.
6. If the soup is cooled, let it heat back up. You can add more salt or pepper if needed. Stir in the heavy cream.

Serve soup garnished with fresh parsley, grated cheese, and crispy bacon. Goes great with a green salad.

Leftovers were just as or maybe even more delicious, even without the parsley and bacon on top.

*Inspired by Alissa and THIS recipe.