Baked Potato Soup

 Easy Homemade Baked Potato Soup

Ingredients:
4 cups of whole milk
4 cups of chicken broth/stock
1 large onion, diced finely
1 package of bacon, fried and chopped, save bacon grease
1 teaspoon of black pepper
1 teaspoon of salt
3/4 cup of butter
3/4 cup of flour
3 garlic cloves, minced
3 lbs of potatoes, scrubbed clean, skins on
8oz bag/block of shredded cheddar cheese
2 stalks of celery, diced
Sour Cream
Green Onions

Directions:
-Bake your potatoes until they are soft, just as if you were making a baked potato. I did mine in the microwave. (Don’t forget to pierce them so they don’t explode) Set them aside to cool so you can peel them.
-Cook your bacon in a large pan, remove grease except for 2-3 tablespoons, on low/med heat.
-Saute your onions in the bacon grease until they become translucent, add in the garlic. celery, salt, and pepper.
-Pour in your chicken stock and bring to a low boil. Stir frequently.
-Pour in 3 cups of milk, stir.
-In a separate sauce pan, melt the butter, add in the flour while whisking to make a roux. Let this cook for a min or so, do not let it burn.
-Whisk in 1 cup of the milk to the sauce pan, don’t stop whisking or it will be lumpy. You are making the thickening agent to the soup. Once this has thickened, pour into large soup pot while whisking in the soup pot.
-In a separate bowl, peel the skins off of your potatoes. Cube your potatoes throw them into the soup pot.
– Once that comes together, pour in the entire 8oz bag of cheese.
-Stir, taste, and add seasoning as needed. I also add in about 1/3 of the chopped, cooked bacon at this point.
-Serve in a bowl with cheese, bacon, green onions, and sour cream.