Baked Potato Soup

Loaded with green onions, crumbled bacon, and shredded cheddar, this Homemade Baked Potato Soup is easy to make but tastes incredible!

Creating This Easy Baked Potato Soup Recipe

This loaded baked potato soup from Cooking Light was absolutely perfect. It is simple and comes together incredibly fast with inexpensive ingredients.

The day before Christmas left us busy with errands, wrapping presents, and plans for a low key Christmas Eve meal. Something hearty and quick, but still satisfying.

Simple meals are sometimes best when you want to spend more time with family and less time cooking and cleaning.

Combine the pure comfort of a loaded baked potato with the warming power of a bowl of hot soup and you have a perfect winter meal. We were all warm and full after one bowl!

Ingredients in Baked Potato Soup

I love how short and simple the ingredients list is for this cheddar baked potato soup recipe. Here’s what you’ll need to make it:

• Potatoes
• Butter
• All-purpose flour
• 2% milk
• Shredded cheddar cheese
• Salt, pepper, and paprika
• Sour cream
• Green onions
• Bacon (cooked and crumbled)

For the complete ingredient list and detailed instructions, scroll to the bottom of this post for the FREE printable recipe card.

How to Make Baked Potato Soup

This is a loaded baked potato soup, but it requires minimal prep work. Here’s an overview of how the soup is made:

1. Bake the potatoes at 400F until tender.
2. Once cooked through, peel the potatoes and coarsely mash.
3. To a large pot, whisk together the butter and flour. Stream in the milk.
4. Let the butter mixture cook until bubbly and thick.
5. Stir in the mashed potatoes, cheese, and spices.
6. Stir in the sour cream and most of the green onions.
7. Once warmed through, ladle into bowls and garnish with additional crumbled bacon, cheese, and green onions.

The above is simply a quick summary of this recipe. Check out the full recipe in the free printable recipe card at the bottom of this post for all the detailed instructions.

Can Potato Soup Be Frozen?

Because this soup is so rich in dairy, I don’t recommend freezing it. Once frozen, the cheddar baked potato soup would likely split and the texture would be off once reheated.

Can I Use Gluten-Free Flour?

The all-purpose flour in this recipe helps thicken the soup. I’m not sure if it can be replaced cup-for-cup with a gluten-free alternative.

Instead, try using arrowroot powder or cornstarch. Note that cornstarch is more powerful than flour, so you’ll use half as much cornstarch for the same results as achieved using flour.

Arrowroot powder is more powerful than cornstarch and even more powerful than flour, so you’ll need much less. Start with using this rule of thumb: 1 teaspoon of arrowroot powder = 1 tablespoon of flour.

Tips for the Best Baked Potato Soup

• You can cut additional time off the prep if you microwave the potatoes instead of baking them (Related: How to Bake Potatoes).
• Or, if you’re thinking ahead of time you can wrap the potatoes in foil and bake them in the crock-pot until tender.
• Make sure to cook and crumble the bacon before adding it to the soup. You can use any bacon you’d like, but I used regular pork bacon.

What Readers Are Saying

“We made this tonight and it was delicious! I microwaved the potatoes and used pre-cooked, microwavable bacon, which saved some time.” — Kelly

“I used 1% milk and reduced fat cheese and my husband still said it was the best baked potato soup he’s ever had! So delish…will definitely be making this a lot!” — Kristin

“I made this soup tonight with refrigerated hash browns and it was delicious! Thanks for posting!” — Barbara

“I love this recipe, but instead of 6 cups of milk, I use 3 cups of chicken broth, and 3 cups of milk…and a little cream. And I always add more like 12 potatoes and dont mash them completely..I like mine kinda chunky! But this is definitely a favorite in our house!” — Ashley

More Easy Soup Recipes:

If you’re looking for a creamy, rich and flavorful soup, try this Italian Sausage Kale Soup. It’s a lightened up version of an Olive Garden Classic and crowd favorite, Zuppa Toscana.

This Slow Cooker Ham Soup with Potatoes and Kale is both easy to prepare and flavorful, thanks to the use of a slow cooker and the rich flavor that a leftover ham bone imparts.

This Lemon Chicken Orzo Soup is a fun twist on classic chicken noodle soup. It’s the perfect soup for soothing sore throats year-round!

This recipe for Cheesy Broccoli Soup with Kale & Carrot is incredibly simple to whip up for dinner on a busy weeknight and the perfect way to warm up on a cold winter evening.

This Roasted Cauliflower Soup is thick, creamy, and flavorful without being loaded down with heavy cream.

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Baked Potato Soup

Yield: 8 servings

Prep Time: 30 minutes

Cook Time: 1 hour 15 minutes

Total Time: 1 hour 45 minutes

Combine the pure comfort of a loaded baked potato with the warming power of a bowl of hot soup and you have a perfect winter meal. We were all warm and full after one bowl.

Print

Ingredients

• 4 baking potatoes (2 1/2 pounds)
• 2 Tbs butter
• 2/3 cup all-purpose flour
• 6 cups 2% reduced-fat milk
• 4 ounces shredded cheddar cheese, plus extra for garnish
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
• 1/4 teaspoon paprika
• 1 cup reduced-fat sour cream
• 3/4 cup chopped green onions, divided
• 10 slices center cut bacon, cooked and crumbled

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 400°.
2. Pierce potatoes with a fork; bake at 400° for 1 hour or until tender. Cool. Peel potatoes; coarsely mash. Discard skins.
3. Lightly spoon flour into a dry measuring cup; level with a knife. Melt butter in a large dutch oven. Add flour, whisking to combine with the butter. Gradually add milk, stirring with a whisk until blended. Cook over medium heat until thick and bubbly (about 8 minutes). Add mashed potatoes, cheese, salt, pepper, and paprika, stirring until cheese melts. Remove from heat.
4. Stir in sour cream and 1/2 cup onions. Cook over low heat 10 minutes or until thoroughly heated (do not boil). Add additional salt and pepper if desired. Sprinkle each serving with cheese, onions, and bacon.

Notes

Adapted from The Best of Cooking Light

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Nutrition Information:

Yield: 8 Serving Size: 1
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 361Total Fat: 23gSaturated Fat: 13gTrans Fat: 1gUnsaturated Fat: 9gCholesterol: 68mgSodium: 753mgCarbohydrates: 20gFiber: 1gSugar: 10gProtein: 18g

GoodLifeEats.com offers recipe nutritional information as a courtesy and is an estimate only. This information comes from online calculators. Although GoodLifeEats.com makes every effort to provide accurate information, these figures are only estimates.

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