Loaded Baked Potato Soup

I don't know how the weather has been where you live, but it's been very unpredictable here. Hot one day, cold and windy the next, and raining on the next day. So one day I'm making sandwiches and salad, and the next I'm making soup! This soup is creamy, filling, and tastes just like a loaded potato.

You need:

• 4 large potatoes (I had smaller ones so I used more)
• 2/3 cup butter
• 2/3 cup flour
• 3/4 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp pepper
• 6 cups milk (I have also substituted mostly chicken broth for the milk)
• 1 cup sour cream (I use light sour cream or fat free Greek yogurt)
• for garnish: green onions, shredded cheese, bacon (we used bacos even though they are nasty- the boys like them) and sour cream

First, bake the potatoes. I do mine at 375 for about an hour. For an explanation on why my cookie sheets look the way they do, see this post.

After the potatoes have cooled, peel them. Then chop them up. Also, then dip some in the sour cream and eat them.

Eating baked potatoes plain reminds me of a race I did where they served boiled potatoes alongside a plate of salt to dip them in. That was good. Especially later in the run when nothing else sounded good.

Next, melt the butter, then add the flour, salt, and pepper. Stir and cook for a minute or two, then start whisking in the milk:

Keep pouring and whisking until all the milk is added. Then bring the milk just to a simmer and whisk it occasionally, until it begins to thicken.

Then add the potatoes

Then the sour cream. Keep it on the heat just until heated through, then turn the burner off and it's ready to go!!

I like to serve this soup with either yeast rolls, quick and easy corn bread,   , or french bread .