Loaded Baked Potato Soup

What warms you up like soup, Nothing....so on this cold snowy day I whipped up a pot of this loaded baked potato soup. Its a crowd pleaser. You really can't go wrong with a creamy soup loaded with potatoes, bacon, and cheese.

Ingredients:

• 8 medium potatoes
• half of a yellow onion chopped
• 1 pack of bacon
• 1/2 cup of sour cream
• 1 cup of sharp cheddar
• 5 cups milk
• 4 tbs flour
• 4 tbs butter
• Salt and Pepper

Garnish:

• 4 tbs of green onions 
• 4 tbs of sharp cheddar 
• 4 tbs cooked chopped bacon
• A small dollop of sour cream for each bowl

potatoes chopped in 1 inch cubes

green onions for garnish

chopped bacon being cooked

Directions:
Peel and chop potatoes into 1 inch cubes. Boil the potatoes in water until fork tender. Drain and set aside. Cook the whole pack of bacon until crisp. I like to cut it into small pieces before cooking. I use my kitchen scissors for this. Once it is cooked I drain it on a paper towel to soak up some of the bacon grease.
In a soup pot add 4 tbs of butter on medium heat. When the butter has melted add the onions. Cook them until the turn translucent making sure to not caramelize them. You don't want any color on them. To the onions add the 4 tbs of flour. You want to stir this around to soak up all the butter. Cook the flour for about 1-2 mins. Add the 5 cups of milk to the pot and whisk together. This will help break any lumps. Cook on medium heat whisking often. Make sure not to scorch the milk. After about 10 mins the milk should be thickened. Add Salt and pepper  to taste.
Add sour cream and cheese. Stir until cheese has melted. Add bacon and potatoes.
Ladle the soup in to bowls and top with a small dollop of sour cream, cheese, bacon, and green onions. Serve immediately.  This soup should warm you up. It pairs great with some garlic cheese biscuits.

When I made this soup we were watching calories. So I used nonfat milk, fat free sour cream, and a sharp cheddar made with 2% milk that was lower in fat and calories. You could also replace the bacon with a turkey bacon if you wanted also. It still turns out very creamy and delicious but is a little more figure friendly.