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I’ll be honest. Potatoes get me through Whole30 every single time. Every. Single. Time. If potatoes weren’t in the program I wouldn’t be either. I first heard about Whole30 from my friend Sam years and years ago. When she did her first round I’m pretty sure white potatoes weren’t included in the program yet and I remember being absolutely flabbergasted that she could go 30 whole days without potatoes. I would die.

I don’t want to die, so I create delicious recipes like this for myself to enjoy for days and days. I have found that when I eat potatoes I pretty much skip the whole “detox” phase that a lot of people experience in the early days of their Whole30’s. And I think I have potatoes to thank for that. As we all know by now, potatoes are carbohydrates. Carbs = happiness. “Happy people just don’t kill their husbands, they just don’t!” Quick, name that movie. What a morbid paragraph this turned out to be.

While you won’t find any husbands here, I do have a boyfriend that I have shared an apartment with for over three years now. My food blog was born in this apartment, so you know that I’ve force fed Mike many a recipe to see if it’s good enough to post on the blog, or not. Well I can tell you that he absolutely LOVED this one. I don’t remember his words exactly, but something along the lines of “top recipe” and “vault” come to mind now that it’s been a few days. He loves it, I love it. This soup reminds me of drinkable mashed potatoes which sounds absolutely disgusting, I get it, but it just works. It also reminds me of my days waitressing at Outback Steakhouse, where their potato soup was so popular that it became a part of the regular menu. My Loaded Baked Potato Soup brings me right back to all the comfort food. It’s just as good, if not better, and a whole lot healthier too. Give it a go and let me know what you think!

thehungryhungryhiker

Loaded Baked Potato Soup

A comforting recipe for a cold weather favorite – potato soup! Includes directions for Instant Pot and stovetop.
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Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 50 minutes
Total Time 1 hour
Servings: 4 people
Course: Soup
Cuisine: American
Ingredients Equipment Method Notes

Ingredients
  

  • ½ lb bacon, cut into lardons check labels for Whole30
  • 1 yellow onion, small, diced small
  • 1 bunch green onions, sliced, green and white parts separated
  • 3 cloves garlic, minced
  • 2 + ½ lbs Yukon gold potatoes, ~1" dice see Note 1
  • 6 cups chicken broth or stock check labels for Whole30
  • ½ tsp fresh ground black pepper plus more for garnish, if desired
  • ¼ cup nutritional yeast
  • 2 tbsp ghee
  • ½ – 1 cup nut milk of choice I use unsweetened almond
  • sea salt as needed

Equipment

  • Instant Pot (optional)
  • Immersion blender

Method
 

Instant Pot instructions:
  1. Press Saute on your Instant Pot. Once hot, add the bacon. Stir occasionally until browned and crisp. This will take 10-15 minutes. Use a slotted spoon to remove the bacon bits and place on a paper towel lined plate. Set aside. Leave the bacon fat in the Instant Pot (see Note 2).
  2. Add the yellow onion, white parts of the green onion, garlic, and potato to the Instant Pot. Stir to coat in the bacon fat and saute for 5-10 minutes until the vegetables are starting to soften. Press Cancel. Add in the chicken broth and fresh ground black pepper. Place the lid on the Instant Pot. Be sure the valve is set to "Sealing" and set to Pressure Cook on High Pressure for 20 minutes. Once the pot comes to pressure, the 20 minute timer will begin.
  3. Once the Instant Pot is done pressure cooking, do a quick release by moving the valve from "Sealing" to "Venting." Once the pressure indicator button drops, carefully remove the lid from the Instant Pot. Add the nutritional yeast, ghee, and ½ cup nut milk to the Instant Pot. Use an immersion blender to blend the soup. Add more nut milk if needed to reach your desired soup consistency.
  4. To serve, ladle into bowls. Add sea salt if needed. Garnish with fresh ground black pepper, bacon bits, and green onions. Serve hot and enjoy!
Stovetop instructions:
  1. Place a large soup pot over medium high heat. Once hot, add the bacon. Stir occasionally until browned and crisp. This will take about 10 minutes. Use a slotted spoon to remove the bacon bits and place on a paper towel lined plate. Set aside. Leave the bacon fat in the pot (see Note 2).
  2. Add the yellow onion, white parts of the green onion, garlic, and potato to the pot. Stir to coat in the bacon fat and saute for 5-10 minutes until the vegetables are starting to soften. Add in the chicken broth and fresh ground black pepper. Bring the pot to a boil. Once boiling, reduce the heat to simmer for 20 minutes or until the potatoes are very fork tender.
  3. Add the nutritional yeast, ghee, and ½ cup nut milk to the Instant Pot. Use an immersion blender to blend the soup. Add more nut milk if needed to reach your desired soup consistency.
  4. To serve, ladle into bowls. Add sea salt if needed. Garnish with fresh ground black pepper, bacon bits, and green onions. Serve hot and enjoy!

Notes

Note 1: I like to peel roughly half of the potatoes, but you can peel all of them or leave all of the skins on. It’s a personal preference. 
Note 2: I like leaving all of the bacon fat in the pot for flavor, but if it’s too much fat for you, you can remove all but 2 tbsp.