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Monday, December 27, 2010

Baked Potato Soup

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I have never made mashed potatoes before. Correction: I once made mashed SWEET potatoes when I made sweet potato shepherd's pie (nom!), but I don't really count that. To this day, I guess I still haven't made authentic mashed white potatoes. I don't have an excuse for why, I just typically prefer my potatoes in chip form and whenever we ate them mashed, my mom or grandma made them.

Maggie (the birthday girl mentioned in yesterday's post!) is quite the talented potato masher and was a little appalled when she discovered my lacking mashed potato skill! Of course it comes as no surprise then that the first soup she learned how to make was potato, another recipe I'd never attempted. Obviously potato soup had to be included on her birthday menu, meaning it was finally time for me to give it a go!

Baked potato soup success! This soup was thick, creamy, and a Cooking Light recipe no less, which meant we could have all the more indulgent dessert (note: s'mores cake)! I baked and mashed the potatoes the night before, then proceeded with step 2 of the directions the next day. The soup came together fairly quickly and I used my immersion blender to get it to the right consistency (not required, I just wanted to smooth out some of the chunks and make the soup equally thick). The birthday girl was pleased, and hopefully proud of my first potato soup attempt :)

Baked Potato Soup
seen on Playing House, a Cooking Light recipe


Ingredients:
-4 baking potatoes (approximately 2 1/2 pounds)
-2/3 cup all-purpose flour
-6 cups 2% percent reduced fat milk
-1 cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese, divided
-1 tsp salt
-1/2 tsp freshly ground pepper
-1 cup light sour cream
-3/4 cup chopped green onions, divided
-6 bacon slices, cooked and crumbled

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 400F. Use a fork to pierce potatoes and bake for 1 hour, until tender. Cool, peel off skins, and coarsely mash.
2. In a large stockpot, add flour. Gradually stir in milk, whisking until blended. Continue to cook over medium heat until thick and bubbly (approximately 8 minutes). Add potatoes, 3/4 cup cheese, salt, and pepper. Stir until cheese melts, then remove from heat.
3. Add sour cream and onions, stirring. Cook over low heat until thoroughly heated, but not boiling (approximately 10 minutes). Top bowls of soup with cheese, onions, and bacon.