It’s officially Sports Food season. Baseball playoffs are coming soon (go Red Sox!), college football is in full swing (go Eagles!) and the NFL is taking over Sundays and Mondays (go…uh…). This means lots of nachos, 7-layer dip, pizza, buffalo wings, blue cheese and other assorted Sporty Foods.
I happen to love Sporty foods. Last year, I made delicious chorizo nachos and boneless (organic and whole wheat) buffalo fingers for the Super Bowl. It’s all about bold, hearty food that pairs nicely with a beer, or two, or three… But soup? Can soup be a Sporty Food? Why yes, yes it can. This weekend, I made Loaded Baked Potato soup. Thick, creamy, topped with bacon, cheese and hot peppers, this soup can definitely hold its weight during the baseball playoffs or a football tailgating session.
You can set your soup station up like you would a taco or baked potato station: a big pot of soup, bowls and toppings. Begin with your potato soup and layer on as many toppings as you’d like. Go crazy here – anything goes. Personally, I’m all about bacon bits, cheddar cheese, chopped spinach, sour cream and jalapenos. It’s a fun, Sunday kind of soup, even if you’d rather curl up with a good book or episode of Gossip Girl (What? Everyone has their guilty pleasures…) than a football team.
Loaded Baked Potato Soup
1.5 tbsp. olive oil
1 small yellow onion, finely chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
3 medium-sized Idaho (or creamer) potatoes (roughly 2.5 lbs.), diced
3 cups chicken stock
1/2 cup plain yogurt (Greek-style Yogurt is perfect here)
Toppings:
1 cup chopped spinach
6 slices bacon, cooked til crisp
6 oz. shredded cheddar cheese
1 – 2 jalapeno or serrano peppers, thinly sliced
1/2 cup sour cream or plain yogurt
More topping ideas:
Green onions
Chives
Diced tomato
Fresh salsa
Sauteed or steamed Broccoli
Sauteed mushrooms
Anything you like to put on your baked potato goes!
Set a large, heavy-bottomed pot over medium heat. Once it’s hot, add the oil, onion and garlic and cook for 5 minutes, or until the onions are just starting to become translucent.
Add the diced potatoes and simmer for another couple of minutes, then add the chicken stock. Let the stock come to a simmer, then reduce the heat to medium-low, cover and cook for 20 – 30 minutes, or until the potatoes are tender. Remove from heat and stir in the yogurt.
Transfer half of the soup to a blender (or use an immersion blender) to puree about half of the soup. The potatoes should still be somewhat chunky, but also creamy.
Serve immediately and top with your favorite toppings.
Makes 6 servings.
This sounds simple and very yummy. I’m a West Coast gal so The Dodgers and Chargers are our teams. We love a great tail gating party and this sounds perfect.
I’d eat this during a game :) or anytime, really! Never thought of putting spinach on top, great idea!!
This sounds soo good! I’m a hockey gal myself and this will be perfect watchin’ the games on the tube. Or even as an easy New Years Eve dinner. And I love the idea of the mushrooms – - YUMMY!!
I don’t watch sports, but I am going to make this!!!!!!!!
This looks great – Now if the weather would just adjust as well – below 100 would be nice!! This will be a great Sunday night football dish!!
I say, a soup like this is perfect for Fall nights! I hope I could have a bowl of this tonight.
Thanks Everyone! I want some now too…DAMMIT!
NO FAIR! TOO YUMMY, TOO FATTENING! I gotta have some.
:-)
pregame, halftime, and post game meal. Tha’s what I’m talking about!
Oh thank you for posting this soup, both reminding me of roast potato soup ANd giving me a new recipe for it!
I’d eat that while watching gossip girl any day!! a great not so guilty pleasure!!!
That’s one hearty potato soup recipe. Love the chunky toppings.
I’m a redsox, eagles, and baked potato soup fan too! I’ve made a similar soup with red potatoes, leaving some of the skins on- gives a nice flavor and color. Anything with bacon qualifies as football food.
Thanks everyone!!!
Spike – Go Sox :)
This soup is delicious! I loved it. I had it yesterday and can’t wait to have the leftovers for lunch today. :-) Thanks for the recipe.
Teresa – Great! The leftovers are just as yummy. I loooooove soup :)
Made this on Sunday, DELICIOUS!! I definitely shared this post on blog!
Rachel – Awesome! Glad you liked it :)
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