Baked Potato Soup with Potato Skin Croutons
THE soup to fuel you through winter! Bake potatoes, use the flesh for the soup, skins for "croutons." Healthy and lightened up with broth, milk and loaded with vegetables.
Servings: 4 large bowls
Equipment
- 1 large pot or dutch oven
Ingredients
- 3 large yukon gold potatoes about 1.5 pounds, baked for I hour; 350 degrees
- 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
- 1 cup leeks whites and light greens, cleaned and sliced thinly
- 3/4 cup carrots cleaned and diced
- 1/2 cup celery cleaned and diced
- 3/4 cup parsnip cleaned and diced
- 1 tablespoon garlic peeled and minced
- 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
- 1/4 teaspoon freshly cracked black pepper
- 1 tablespoons flour can use gluten free flour blend
- 3 cups vegetable or chicken broth
- 1 cup milk full fat
- 8 ounces silken tofu
Potato Skin Croutons:
- 1 1/2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika
- 1/2 cup extra sharp cheddar cheese grated
- 2 teaspoon fresh chives or scallions small chop
Garnishes:
- 1 teaspoon dill leaves
- 1 teaspoon fresh rosemary chopped fine
- 2 tablespoons crispy bacon crumbled (optional)
Instructions
- Scrub potatoes, dry them.Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Pierce each potato a bit with the tines of a fork. Place the potatoes on a plate and microwave for 5 minutes to partially cook them. Place the potatoes on a large piece of tin foil on a baking tray, brush with a little oil all over. Crimp the foil to totally enclose and bake on a pan for 20 minutes until fully baked.
- Remove from oven, cool a bit. Cut the potatoes in half horizontally, scoop out the potato flesh and place in a bowl. Leave a 1/4" shell of potato on the skins; reserve for croutons.
- In a large, heavy pot, add 1 T. olive oil, raise heat to medium-low. When warm add the vegetables; leeks, carrots, celery, parsnip, garlic,1 t. smoked paprika and pepper. Give a big stir, cook for 5 minutes until softened. Add 1 T flour. cook one minute stirring. Add 3 cups of broth and 1 cup of milk.
- Bring to a boil stirring, will thicken slightly. Add the silken tofu and reserved potatoes flesh from their skins. Turn heat down to a simmer after it boils and cover the soup.Cook for 10 minutes to mingle the flavors. Taste the soup, add up to 1 teaspoon sea salt (depends on the saltiness of your broth.)
- Add HALF to the soup to the carafe of a blender, and blend smooth. Add back to the pot.
Potato Skin Croutons:
- Preheat to oven to 400 degrees. You will have reserved 6 potato skin halves. Cut each half into 3 wedges to create 18 wedges. Add them to a foil lined baking tray. Add the 1 1/2 T. oil with smoked paprika in a small dish. Brush over potato wedges. Bake in the hot oven until crisped and dark golden, about 15 minutes. Sprinkle with sea salt.Top with grated cheddar cheese. Sprinkle with chives or scallions, add back to the oven until melted, about 2 minutes.
To Serve:
- Ladle the soup into individual bowls. Serve with potato skin croutons on the side, or cut them into smaller pieces and add to the top of the soup. Garnish with dill leaves and chopped rosemary. Finish with a dusting of smoked paprika. Add optional crumbled bacon or my "shiitake" bacon. Add a dollop of sour cream or greek yogurt if you desire.
Notes
Preparation time includes I hour of baking the potatoes; soup cooks in 15 minutes, total time.
Karen’s Shiitake Mushroom “Bacon” VEGAN (recipe) This recipe may not be reproduced without consent of its author, Karen Sheer
Karen’s Shiitake Mushroom “Bacon” VEGAN (recipe) This recipe may not be reproduced without consent of its author, Karen Sheer
Nutrition
Calories: 271kcal | Carbohydrates: 20g | Protein: 10g | Fat: 17g | Saturated Fat: 5g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 2g | Monounsaturated Fat: 8g | Cholesterol: 21mg | Sodium: 153mg | Potassium: 480mg | Fiber: 4g | Sugar: 8g | Vitamin A: 5071IU | Vitamin C: 10mg | Calcium: 234mg | Iron: 2mg