We love soups in our house because soup can go a long way in feeding a hungry family, is easy to prepare and cost effective. With COVID-19 still impacting day-to-day life, we aim to grocery shop one to two times per month, so soups really help stretch a handful of ingredients. Pioneers often made a big pot of soup to feed their large families and gathering the ingredients from around the homestead was always helpful!
My daughter requested potato soup that tasted like a baked potato with all the fix-ins! I tossed a bunch of things into the pot, and this delicious soup is what I came up with! It really does taste like a baked potato when you have all the toppings on! It is scrumptious and we gobbled it all up!
Let’s get cooking!
I used quinoa to help thicken the soup. It makes the soup a bit more hearty and helps to provide a plant-based protein while stretching the soup out a bit further. You can easily substitute the raw potato for cooked baked potatoes – a great way to use those leftovers!
Loaded Baked Potato Soup
1 onion, chopped
2 celery stalks, diced
2 carrots, chopped
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
1/4 tsp dill
3 to 4 cups chopped potatoes
3/4 cup quinoa
3 cups chicken broth
8 to 10 cups water
2/3 cup dill pickle juice
Toss onion, celery and carrot in pot and saute in a splash of oil with a sprinkle of salt and pepper and dill. Once onions are translucent, add potatoes, quinoa, broth and water. Cook for 30 minutes. Add pickle juice and cook an additional 10 minutes. If soup seems thick, add more water. Taste and adjust seasonings.
To serve, dollop on sour cream or yogurt. We use kefir-style yogurt which is loaded with probiotics and tastes just like sour cream. Sprinkle the soup with chopped green onions and crumbled cooked bacon.
We also had corn muffins – a take on cornbread – which tasted great with this yummy soup! Find the recipe here: https://www.ourcityhomestead.com/cornbread-muffins/
