Hi everyone! Chilly weather is upon us, and it’s time to start making dishes that can steal center stage at your Thanksgiving/Friendsgiving/any old regular dinner gathering. This recipe is two twists on a timeless classic. One, because baked potato is traditionally not in soup form (obviously), and two, because I have completely veganized it here (again, obviously). So sit back and enjoy reading about this dreamy loaded baked potato soup. Then chop chop, get up and go make it! You can thank me later.
Why you will love this soup
It’s hard to not love potatoes- I for one, can eat potatoes in every shape and form. When I was vegetarian as a child, I used to go to Fresh Choice/ Souplantation decently often (what a throwback!). My favorite thing there was the baked potato line, where I could self serve as big a dollop of butter and sour cream as my heart desired onto my baked potato and then finish it off with a mountain of cheddar shreds. I obviously never touched the bacon since I grew up meatless. Nevertheless, since the only ingredient in baked potato that was vegan was, well, the freaking potato itself, it was something I had to bid farewell when I went vegan.
Then I realized that I was limiting myself. My whole motto is that anything can be made flavorful, authentic and vegan. So I got to work. I already knew which vegan versions of sour cream, cheese, and butter were my favorite. I was gifted a deliciously meat vegan bacon by My Forest Foods after I met them at the Vegan Women Summit in New York this year. What’s great about this brand that they are made with mushroom and coconut oil, both of which help it mimic the fatty profile of bacon.
How to make loaded baked potato soup
As with most of my recipes, parallel tasking is the name of the game. You’ll need to soup pots and one saute pan. Set your potatoes to boil first and set a timer for 20-25 minutes. While that is doing its thing, crisp up the vegan bacon and set it aside. It took me 8-10 minutes to get it crispy and slightly darker in color than it was uncooked. Since it’s not made from animal fat, the change in color is more subtle so just look for a slightly darker color than it was going into the pan.
Next grab your second soup pot and saute vegan butter with aromatics until fragrant. Add in the flavor makers, like Everything but the Leftovers seasoning from Trader Joe’s and Better than Bouillon paste. Now make it a soup by adding water and plant milk. Season to taste.
Drain the cooked potatoes and have fun whisking them into coarse and fluffy chunks. Pro tip: leave the skins on. I love how the texture of the potato skins breaks up the fluffy starchy insides.
Pour the whipped potatoes into the soup and stir well. Add sour cream, cheese, and half the cooked bacon. Stir until the sour cream and cheese melt into the soup. Garnish with chives and enjoy with some crusty sourdough bread.
