Alison’s Potato Soup
By Alison Stoner
Soup is the sixth love language, and specifically, my top scoring one. To say I love soup is an. I could literally eat it every day.
Chicken noodle, vegetable beef, minestrone, Tuscan tortellini, navy bean, chicken tortilla, chili (is this a soup?)… there are just so many options and so many days of the week!
A warm bowl of soup with a side of buttery hot toast is my comfort, and my ultimate favorite variety is potato soup!
Creamy potato and ham soup was a delicious treat that wiggled its way into my heart. And then I met my husband, who is allergic to both pork and dairy. It then became my life’s mission to create a potato soup that my family could all enjoy (and not feel like they were eating a subpar allergy friendly version).
There were most definitely some flopped pots of attempts gone wrong, but I have since mastered the most delicious pot of creamy potato soup (yes, I’ll boldly declare it as fact!). I’ve made this soup so many times for a delivered meal, women’s events, and dinner guests. It’s also my children’s most requested meal! One really great thing about this recipe is that it’s incredibly flexible for whoever you’re serving. I’ve made it fully dairy/pork, Stoner family friendly, and completely vegan. The soup is forgiving and versatile so play around with ingredients to best fit your family!
Ingredients:
2 tbsp butter (olive oil)
8 oz turkey bacon (or pork, or omit entirely)
1 yellow onion, diced
3-4 gloves of garlic, minced
3 celery stalks, diced
4 large carrots, peeled & diced
5 lbs yellow gold potatoes, peeled & diced
64 oz chicken stock (vegetable stock)
13 oz unsweetened coconut milk (whole milk or heavy whipping cream)
8 oz dairy free cream cheese (regular cream cheese)
4 oz goat cheese (shredded cheddar cheese)
2-3 tbsp nutritional yeast (not needed if using cheddar cheese)
Salt, pepper, and garlic powder to taste
Top with red pepper flakes (if desired)
Directions:
In a large Dutch oven or stock pot, melt butter over medium heat. Add bacon and cook. Stir in onion and garlic and sauté until translucent. If ingredients are starting to burn, add more butter or begin adding stock.
Add diced celery and carrots, and add 32 oz of stock. Season with salt, pepper, and garlic powder. While the celery and carrots soften, peel and dice potatoes.
Add diced potatoes and remaining 32 oz of stock. Cover with lid and let vegetables cook, reducing heat so the soup is at a simmer.
When vegetables are softened, add cream cheese and goat cheese. Scoop the cream of the coconut milk off the top and stir into the soup. Pour the remaining coconut milk into the soup. Add nutritional yeast and stir completely. Return the lid and let simmer for 10 minutes.
With a potato masher, blend the softened vegetable to make a creamy soup. I like the leave some lumps so I prefer to use the masher, but an immersion blender could be used for this step too. Let cook for 5 minutes more for the soup to thicken more.
Before serving, taste for salt and pepper. Add more if needed.
Serve soup, and top with any desired toppings (parsley, shredded cheese, sour cream, crackers).