Baked Potato Soup With Optional Bacon Recipes

Steps:

• Place bacon in a large, deep skillet. Cook over medium heat until browned. Drain, crumble, and set aside.
• In a stock pot or Dutch oven, melt the margarine over medium heat. Whisk in flour until smooth. Gradually stir in milk, whisking constantly until thickened. Stir in potatoes and onions. Bring to a boil, stirring frequently.
• Reduce heat, and simmer 10 minutes. Mix in bacon, cheese, sour cream, salt, and pepper. Continue cooking, stirring frequently, until cheese is melted.

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
• Place the potatoes on a roasting tray and bake for 45 minutes. When done, the tip of a paring knife should go through the potatoes easily.
• Slice the bacon into lardons (thin strips) and cook in a large, heavy-bottomed pot over medium heat until crisp. Remove the bacon from the pot with a slotted spoon and set aside, leaving the drippings in the pot.
• Add the flour to the drippings in the pot and stir to combine. Cook, without adding color, until the flour and fat has combined, about 1 minute. Pour in the milk while you whisk to incorporate. Cook over medium heat until bubbly and thickened, stirring frequently, about 15 minutes.
• Scoop out the potato pulp from the skins and add to the milk mixture. Mash with the back of a wooden spoon leaving it a little bit chunky.
• Add the cooked bacon (leaving a little out for garnishing the soup), 1 cup of the cheese, and season well with salt and pepper. Stir until the cheese has melted. Remove from the heat.
• Ladle the soup into bowls, drizzle with sour cream (from a squeeze bottle), sprinkle with remaining bacon bits, grated cheese and chives.

Steps:

• In a large saucepan over medium heat, add the potatoes, onion, celery and water. Bring to a boil then lower the heat and keep it at a simmer. Simmer uncovered 20 - 30 minutes, until the potatoes mash easily.
• Carefully press a potato masher through the soup until most of the potatoes are broken up.
• Add the sour cream, milk, butter, salt, and black pepper. Return the soup to a simmer and cook for about five minutes. Taste and add additional salt and pepper if needed.
• Serve with cheddar cheese, butter, green onions, chives, bacon, and any other favorite baked potato toppings.

Steps:

• Melt the butter in a large pot over medium-high heat. Add the bacon and cook, stirring occasionally, until crisp, 4 to 6 minutes. Remove the bacon with a slotted spoon and transfer to a paper towel-lined plate.
• Reduce the heat to medium and add the onion, scallion whites and a big pinch of salt to the pot. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the onion is soft but not browned, about 8 minutes. Add the flour, celery seeds and white pepper; stir until combined.
• Add the potatoes, 3 1/2 cups water and 1 teaspoon salt to the pot. Bring to a boil over high heat, then reduce the heat to medium and simmer until the potatoes are tender but not falling apart, about 10 minutes.
• Remove the pot from the heat and transfer 1/2 cup of the potatoes to a blender. Add the half-and-half, cream cheese and parmesan and blend until very smooth. Gently stir the mixture into the pot along with the scallion greens, hot sauce and half of the bacon. Bring to a gentle simmer over medium heat; season with salt.
• Divide the soup among bowls. Top with cheddar cheese, the remaining bacon and chives.

Steps:

• Melt butter in large saucepan or Dutch oven on medium heat. Add yellow onions and celery; cook and stir 5 min. or until crisp-tender. Add next 4 ingredients; bring just to boil, stirring constantly. Lightly crush potatoes with back of spoon. Simmer on medium-low heat 5 min., stirring frequently.
• Reserve 1 Tbsp. green onions and 2 Tbsp. each bacon and cheese. Add remaining green onions, bacon and cheese to soup; cook 5 min. or until cheese is melted, stirring constantly.
• Serve topped with reserved green onions, bacon, cheese and sour cream.

Steps:

• In a large soup pot or Dutch oven over medium heat, cook the bacon (if using) until crisp, 12 to 13 minutes. Transfer the bacon to a paper-towel lined plate or cutting board. Return the pot with just 3 tablespoons of the bacon fat to the stove. (If there's not enough fat, supplement with butter to total 3 tablespoons.) If making the soup vegetarian, melt butter in a large soup pot or Dutch oven over medium heat.
• Over medium-low heat, sauté the white parts of the scallions and the garlic until golden brown, 2 to 3 minutes, stirring frequently and adjusting the heat as necessary to avoid burning the garlic. Add the potatoes, milk and 2 teaspoons salt, and bring to a boil over medium-high heat (resist the urge to heat it faster as this can lead to curdling). Once at a boil, lower the heat and simmer covered until the potatoes are tender, 10 to 15 minutes.
• As soup simmers, prepare the potato skins: Warm the olive oil over medium-high heat in a large skillet. Working in batches if needed, add the potato peels in a single layer and cook, flipping once, until crisp and golden-brown, about 3 minutes. Transfer to a paper towel-lined plate or cutting board, then sprinkle with salt, pepper, cayenne and garlic powder. Crumble and set aside.
• Once the potatoes are tender, take the pot off the heat, and purée the mixture with an immersion blender if you'd like a smooth soup. (Mash with a potato masher if you'd like a chunkier soup.) Stir in the sour cream and cheese until combined, then season with salt and pepper. Serve topped with crumbled bacon, more sour cream and Cheddar and the green parts of the scallions. Top with potato peels (eat any extra as chips, dipped in ketchup and mustard).

Steps:

• Cook bacon until crisp in 3-quart saucepan, remove and drain well on paper towels. Discard bacon grease and wipe pan thoroughly with paper towel.
• Meanwhile, prepare vegetables. Add olive oil to saucepan and add onion, carrot, and celery as they are cut up. Saute until onion is soft but not brown, about 3-4 minutes.
• Stir in chicken broth, potatoes, and pepper; bring to a boil, reduce heat, and simmer, covered, until potatoes are tender, about 10-15 minutes.
• Stir in cheese, heating just until melted--do not boil. Chop bacon and add to soup. Adjust seasoning to taste by adding salt, if desired. Serve at once.

Steps:

• In a large soup pot melt butter over medium-high heat.
• Add in garlic; cook stirring for about 2 minutes.
• Add in flour then stir until smooth (about 1 minute).
• Gradually add milk and half and half stirring constantly until thickened and smooth.
• Add potatoes and onions; bring to a boil, stirring constantly.
• Reduce heat; simmer for 10 minutes.
• Add remaining ingredients; stir until cheese is melted.
• Serve immediately.
• Delicious!

Steps:

• Place cooked bacon in a large stockpot over medium-high heat; add potatoes, chicken broth, carrots, onion, parsley, celery seed, salt, and pepper. Bring mixture to a boil, cover stockpot with a lid, reduce heat to medium-low, and simmer, stirring frequently and slightly mashing potatoes, until potatoes are fully cooked, at least 20 minutes. Add extra chicken broth if needed.
• Whisk milk and flour together in a bowl or measuring cup until frothy; slowly pour into soup while constantly stirring. Bring soup back to a simmer and cook until soup is thickened, 3 to 5 minutes.
• Remove soup from heat and stir in American cheese until completely melted. Ladle soup into serving bowls and garnish with green onions.

Steps:

• Melt butter in saucepan over medium heat; cook and stir onion until lightly browned, about 10 minutes. Add potatoes, water, dill weed, salt, and pepper to onion; bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer until potatoes are tender and water is almost all evaporated, at least 30 minutes.
• Stir milk and bacon bits into potato mixture; bring to a boil. Remove from heat and stir parsley into soup.