This easy Cheesy Potato Soup With Crispy Potato Skins is creamy, cheesy, rich and flavorful – and the baked crispy potato skins and all the extra fixin’s take it over the top!
Friends, this soup is 100% total comfort food! We could all use some of that right about now, no? Topped with bacon, cheese, sour cream, green onions, and crispy potato skins (the best part!), it tastes like a loaded baked potato!
Plus, it’s super easy to make and ready in less than an hour. How awesome is that? Pretty darn awesome!
What is definitely not awesome is that Old Man Winter is already knocking on my door. On Friday, we woke up to 3 inches of snow on the ground, and the past few days have been so windy and cold. Brrr and Grrr!
On days like that, there’s nothing better to warm you up than this cheesy potato soup. It makes you feel all toasty inside, and your belly will be full and completely satisfied.
Loaded potato soup is a classic for good reason…it’s absolutely delicious. But I’ve always felt that there was one thing missing in most recipes: the potato skins!
When I eat a baked potato, I look forward to eating the skin (my mom always said that that’s where all the vitamins are!). I love them, and I’ll usually eat anybody else’s if they’re willing to give them up.
So I decided that, instead of throwing away those potato peels, I was going to bake them to crisp them up (easy!) and put them on top of my soup.
Best idea ever (well, as far as this soup goes, anyway!). They crisp up beautifully in the oven and turn into little bits of deliciousness that take this soup to the next level!
Ingredients you need:
- Russet potatoes
- Olive oil
- Bacon
- Onion
- Garlic
- All-purpose flour
- Roasted chicken base (such as Better Than Bouillon (#notsponsored))
- Water
- Milk
- Heavy cream
- Sharp cheddar cheese
- Seasoned salt
- Salt and pepper
- Sour cream
- Green onions
Here’s a look at how to make Cheesy Potato Soup With Crispy Potato Skins:
Tips & Tidbits:
- Personally, I am not a fan of super thick and gloopy soups. As written, this recipe will give you a semi-thick soup, which I think is perfect.
- If you want it thicker, you could add a little more flour. Just be sure to add it where the recipe calls for it, because you need to cook out the raw flour taste.
- I love having some chunks of potato in my potato soup, so I only puree about half of the soup. This adds some body/thickness to the soup while still leaving you with some potatoes too.
- If you prefer a completely smooth soup, puree all of it!
- If you don’t have a blender, you could skip this step. The soup will just be a bit thinner and will have more potato chunks – and it will still be very delicious!
- Grate your own cheese, please! Many pre-shredded cheeses have ingredients added to keep them from clumping, which can give your soup a grainy, unpleasant texture.
- To enjoy those crispy potato skins at their absolute best, I recommend serving this soup immediately.
- Of course, if you’re not into potato skins (hey…to each, their own), you can certainly leave them out. In fact, the soup without the toppings is yummy all on its own – but those toppings just make it so much better!
- You will get four generous bowls of soup with this recipe – enough for a main dish with a salad and/or some bread. If you want to serve it as a starter course, you could easily stretch it out to six small bowls.
Those potato skins are so good, they make for an excellent snack too. Make them any time you have to peel some potatoes (no waste!). Season them up however you like (ooh…possibilities!), and you have a tasty pre-dinner treat!
I hope you try this recipe for Cheesy Potato Soup With Crispy Potato Skins and love it as much as I do. Thanks for visiting today!
- Broccoli, Cauliflower and Cheese Soup
- Easy Homemade French Onion Soup
- Instant Pot Chicken Noodle Soup
- Hearty Hamburger Soup
- Creamy Tomato Soup
Cheesy Potato Soup With Crispy Potato Skins
Ingredients
The Soup and Crispy Potato Skins:
- 2 pounds Russet potatoes
- ½ tablespoon olive oil
- 4 slices bacon, chopped into ½-inch pieces
- 1 tablespoon butter
- ½ cup chopped onions
- 1 clove garlic, minced
- 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 4 cups water
- 4 teaspoons roasted chicken base, such as Better Than Bouillon
- 1 teaspoon seasoned salt, add more or less to taste
- ½ cup milk
- ½ cup heavy cream
- 2 cups shredded sharp cheddar cheese
The Extra Fixin's:
- 4 tablespoons shredded sharp cheddar cheese
- 4 tablespoons thinly sliced green onions
- 4 tablespoons sour cream
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400°F.
- Wash the potatoes until clean; dry them with paper towels or a clean kitchen towel (they need to be dry so they will crisp up in the oven).
- Peel the potatoes in long, wide strips. Cut the peels, as needed, so the pieces are about 2 inches long. Chop the peeled potatoes into ½-inch pieces.
- Place the peels in a bowl; toss with the olive oil and salt and pepper to taste.
- Spread out the peels in one layer on a large baking sheet lined with parchment paper (this will keep them from sticking and will also make for easy clean-up). Try not to have any pieces on top of one another so all the pieces get nice and crispy.
- Roast for 15 to 20 minutes, stirring halfway through (be sure to spread them out again), or until they are golden brown and crisp. Remove the pan from the oven and let them cool. Note: To use your time most efficiently, start making the soup while the potato peels are in the oven
- In a large pot (I use a 4-quart pot or larger), cook the bacon over medium heat until crisp. Remove the bacon from the pot to a plate lined with paper towels. Remove all but one tablespoon of the bacon grease from the pot.
- Add the butter to the pot along with the onions. Cook, stirring occasionally, just until the onions have begun to soften, about 2 to 3 minutes (don't let them brown; reduce the heat if needed).
- Add the garlic and cook, stirring frequently, for another minute
- Add the flour and cook, stirring frequently, for another minute (this will cook out the raw flour taste).
- Combine the water and roasted chicken base; add it to the pot along with the chopped potatoes and seasoned salt. Bring to a boil; reduce the heat, cover, and simmer for about 10 minutes or until the potatoes are fork-tender.
- Add the milk and heavy cream; stir to combine.
- Puree half of the soup in a blender and add it back to the soup; stir to combine. Note: Puree in batches, if needed. Never fill the blender more than half full. Be very careful, as steam will build up in the container. Remove the center cap in the lid, if there is one, to allow steam to escape. Cover the lid and hole with a clean folded kitchen towel (and use oven mitt to protect your hand), and hold down the lid while blending to prevent it from coming off and spewing out hot liquid. Always follow the manufacturer's instructions and safety guidelines for blending hot foods in your specific blender.
- Over low heat, add the 2 cups of cheese and stir until it has melted and the soup is heated through. Taste and adjust the seasonings, if needed.
- Divide the soup among four bowls and top each serving with ¼ of the crispy potato skins, ¼ of the bacon, 1 tablespoon cheese, 1 tablespoon green onions, and 1 tablespoon of sour cream. ENJOY!
Notes
- This soup and the crispy potato peels are best when served immediately!
- If you have leftovers, store the cooled potato skins in an airtight container at room temperature. They may be less crispy the next day.
- If you don’t have a blender, you could skip the step of pureeing half of the soup. The soup will be a bit thinner with more potato chunks, but it will still be just as delicious!
- Grate your own cheese. Some shredded cheese have anti-clumping ingredients, which can result in soup with a grainy, unpleasant texture.
Leave a Reply