Quick soups are the best lunch or dinner option for the cooler months! Warm up with a bowl of this quick, loaded baked potato soup packed with flavor and loaded with all the fixings.
Loaded Baked Potato Soup
Once the temperatures in Arizona hover around or below 100 degrees, I'm all about homemade warm soups. I know that may sound insane, but that is the sign that fall is coming to Arizona!
I love a creamy soup as much as the next girl, but I prefer something much lighter when I'm making a batch of my favorite soups at home. Sometimes I'll make Italian wedding soup or maybe throw together some minestrone soup.
But there's nothing quite as comforting as a warm bowl of potato soup, and when I searched for light recipe, most of the have cream in them!
If you don't eat dairy, or if you just don't want a heavy soup, you can't enjoy most of those recipes. So, I decided to experiment with flipping the typical ratio of broth to cream to see if I could come up with a lighter version of loaded baked potato soup...and I did!
Even with a lighter base, this soup has all the flavors of a loaded baked potato. It is perfect for a hearty meal that won't weigh you down, and doesn't skimp on flavor!
Whip up this tasty soup in just about 30 minutes. You'll have a bowl full of comfort food on the dinner table in no time.
Why You'll Love this Recipe
- There's veggies and meat in this recipe! A great soup to eat if you're looking for a balanced meal. You can also make it vegetarian.
- Creamy potato soup is a crowd pleaser. It'd be great to serve when you're hosting guests, or simply as an easy family dinner meal.
- This recipe only use simple ingredients! You can say goodbye to those dehydrated potato soup mixes.
Ingredients
- unsalted butter
- mirepoix (equal parts celery, carrots, and onion)
- minced garlic cloves
- salt
- pepper
- Italian Seasoning
- all purpose flour
- whole milk
- chicken broth
- Yukon potatoes
- spinach
- cooked bacon
- shredded cheddar or cheddar blend cheese
Substitutions and Variations
You can use a gluten-free 1:1 flour substitute, such as King Arthur Measure for Measure Flour, to make this recipe without gluten.
Feel free to substitute the Yukon gold potatoes for any others you like. Russet potatoes and red potatoes would both work well.
You can use heavy cream or half in half in place of the whole milk if you prefer.
Make this soup vegetarian by swapping the chicken broth for vegetable broth and omit the bacon bits.
Do you love having extra toppings on your soups? Then serve this creamy potato soup with a dollop of sour cream, diced green onion, extra crispy bacon bits, different types of shredded cheese, and any other potato toppings you want!
How to Make Loaded Baked Potato Soup
Wash and peel the celery and carrots, then mince them well. Place them in a bowl and set aside.
Then, mince the onion and add it to the bowl with the celery and carrots
Wash, peel, and chop the potatoes into about one inch chunks. Place the diced potatoes in a separate bowl and set it aside.
Hot Tip: Be sure you peel all off all of the potato skins. The skins won't cook well in a soup, so make ensure they're completely peeled before dicing!
In a large pot or large dutch oven, melt the butter and cook the diced celery, carrots, and onion until fragrant. Add in the fresh minced garlic, salt, pepper, and Italian seasoning. After 1-2 minutes, add the all-purpose flour and stir until it coats all of the vegetables.
Pour the milk into the stock pot and cook over a low-medium heat for about 5 minutes. Then pour in the chicken broth and stir.
Carefully place the diced potatoes into the pot and then cover them with the remaining broth.
Bring the ingredients to a boil and cook for 5 minutes, then simmer over medium-high heat for 20 minutes until the potatoes are tender.
Add spinach to the soup and stir well.
If you want, use an immersion blender (affiliate) to break up the larger chunks of potatoes and veggies. This is not necessary, but it will create a smoother soup if that is what you prefer.
If the soup is a little thick, add a few splashes of broth or milk.
Ladle the soup into bowls and top with cooked bacon bits and shredded cheese.
What to Serve with Loaded Baked Potato Soup
I love having a bowl of loaded baked potato soup with bread! This cheese garlic bread or these homemade dinner rolls are perfect. These goat cheese rosemary drop biscuits pair beautifully too!
But this soup also pairs well with a simple green salad if you want to go that route. You can even serve a small bowl of this soup as a side dish for sandwiches and other simple meals.
How to Store Leftover Baked Potato Soup
This easy soup recipe is great to add into your meal prep routine since it stores so well! Or, you can simply keep leftovers and heat them up for lunch or dinner later in the week.
Store leftover loaded potato soup in the fridge in an airtight container. It will last up to a week.
You can also store it in the freezer. Place soup in freezer bags or an airtight container and freeze for up to six months.
To reheat, allow the soup to thaw if frozen, then place it on the microwave or stove top until warmed through.
Tips for Success
- Cook bacon before you begin making this soup. Then, you'll have fresh bacon bits to top your bowl of comfort food!
- Feel free to increase the cook time if the potatoes have not cooked tender enough.
- Mince the carrots, celery, and onion really fine so that they evenly distribute throughout the whole pot of soup.
FAQ
Mirepoix is simply a combination of celery, carrots, and onion. Yellow onions are typically used in mirepoix, but you can substitute a white onion or sweet onion.
If you find your soup to be too thick, you'll need to use some type of thickening agent. Make a simply cornstarch slurry with a tablespoon of cornstarch and some water. Once the soup is boiling, add it to the pot and stir until the soup thickens.
More One Pot Recipes
- One Pot Prosciutto Pesto Feta Pasta
- One Pan Chicken Piccata
- Ground Turkey Sweet Potato Skillet
- Sweet Potato Kale Sauté
If you make and love this recipe, please leave a ★★★★★ review below! It means so much to me when you try my recipes, and I'd love to know how it goes. Please leave a comment below if you have any questions.
Loaded Baked Potato Soup
This loaded baked potato soup is full of flavor and so quick and easy to make.
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 2 ½ cups mirepoix (roughly equal parts celery (2 stalks), carrots (2), and onions (½ of an onion), minced)
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon pepper
- 1 teaspoon Italian Seasoning
- 2 tablespoons all purpose flour
- 1 cup whole milk
- 4 cups chicken broth
- 6 Yukon potatoes, peeled and cubed
- ½ cup spinach, ripped into pieces
- 4-6 slices cooked bacon (cooked ahead of time on skillet, in microwave or in oven), cut into pieces with kitchen shears or knife.
- ½ cup shredded cheddar or cheddar blend cheese
Instructions
- Wash and/or peel celery and carrots. Mince and set aside in a medium bowl.
- Mince onion and place in medium bowl with celery and carrots.
- Peel and chop potatoes into roughly one inch chunks. Place in separate bowl.
- In a stock pot, melt butter. Once melted add?mirepoix and cook until fragrant (2-3 minutes), stirring frequently. Add in garlic, salt, pepper and Italian seasonings.
- After about a minute, add in flour and stir to coat vegetables.
- Pour in milk and cook on low-medium heat for about 5 minutes. Then pour in half of chicken broth and stir.
- Pour in potatoes carefully and cover with remaining broth.
- Bring liquid to a slow boil and cook for 5 minutes. Then simmer for an additional 20 minutes until potatoes are tender with a fork.
- Add in spinach pieces and stir.
- If desired, use an immersion blender to break up larger chunks of veggies and potatoes (completely optional but makes for a fun texture and creaminess!)
- Using a ladle, pour into soup bowl. Top with bacon and cheese.
- If soup is too thick, pour in a splash of broth or cream.
Notes
Keep in fridge for up to one week.
Once cooled, pour into a plastic bag and lay flat in freezer. Freeze for up to 6 months.
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Nutrition Information:
Yield: 6 Serving Size: 1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 404Total Fat: 16gSaturated Fat: 8gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 6gCholesterol: 48mgSodium: 1193mgCarbohydrates: 50gFiber: 7gSugar: 8gProtein: 16g
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