What’s the soup du jour? It’s the soup of the day!

Today’s soup is… Loaded Potato Soup.

Nothing warms the spirit, or the body, quite like a bowl of potato soup. Rich and induglent! 

 If you’ve never had Loaded Potato Soup before, here is a recipe you can try at home.

 Ingredients:

• 6 strips bacon
• 1/2 medium onion chopped
• 4 large Russet potatoes diced (you don’t have to peel them, but you should scrub them well before dicing them)
• 1/4 cup flour
• 4 cups whole milk
• 1 cup chicken broth
• 1 clove garlic minced (about 1 tablespoon)
• 3/4 cup grated cheddar cheese or more to taste
• Chopped scallions to taste
• 3/4 cup sour cream or more to taste
• Salt & pepper to taste

How To:

1. Cut the bacon in to small pieces and add it to a soup pot (I use kitchen shears to make this job easy). Fry the bacon over medium-high heat until it's nice and crispy (about 10 minutes). When the bacon is done, transfer it to a paper towel lined plate.
2. Leave about two tablespoons of the bacon fat in the pot (it's fine to eyeball it). Discard the rest of the bacon fat or reserve it to use in another recipe. If you don’t have any or enough bacon fat, add a little olive oil to the pot.
3. Add the diced onion and minced garlic to the pot and sauté it for 5 minutes, or until translucent.
4. Add in the flour and cook it for about a minute, stirring frequently.
5. Whisk the milk in slowly until the flour has dissolved. Your pot should be over a medium-low heat. Anything hotter may scald your milk.
6. Add the chicken broth and potatoes. Increase the heat to high. Scrape up any browned bits from the bottom of the pot. When the soup is almost boiling, reduce the heat and cover the pot with the lid slightly open. Let the soup simmer gently for 20 minutes.
7. While the soup's cooking, get the cheddar, scallions, and sour cream ready.
8. The potatoes should be very tender by now. You can test the done-ness by poking them with a fork. If they’re too firm to pierce, let it all cook down for another 5 to 10 minutes. Use a potato masher or large ladle to mash the potatoes a little bit right in the pot. If you prefer a lumpier soup skip this step.  If you want to leave the potatoes as-is, that's fine too.
9. Stir in the sour cream and most of the cheddar and bacon (I reserve some to top the soup with). Season the soup with salt & pepper as needed. Top each bowl with the scallions and remaining cheddar and bacon.

Helpful Tips:

• If you don’t want to fry up the bacon yourself, you can use pre-cooked bacon bits, or microwave bacon strips. If you decide to go with one of these options, start at step 2.
• Garlic, sour cream, and cheese should always be measured by heart. Use as much or as little as you prefer.

*This shopping mall doesn't have a lot of active stores right now, but the parking lot does still have traffic. Be aware of your surroundings and adhere to the drive lanes for your safety.