CopyCat Outback Steakhouse Potato Soup

Ingredients

Potatoes (4 large or up to 8 small potatoes)
Kosher Salt
Vegetable Oil
2 sticks of butter
1 Onion, diced
3/4 cup of all purpose flour
48 oz of chicken broth
2 cups water
Celery salt to taste
1/2 tsp ground black pepper
1/4 tsp dried basil
1/4 tsp sugar
1 1/2 cups heavy cream
4-6 slices of cooked bacon, chopped
Chopped chives
2 cups shredded Monterrey Jack / Cheddar cheese blend.

Directions

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees

Rinse and scrub the skins of the potatoes and dry with a towel and then pierce each potato several times with a fork.

Place a small amount of oil in your hands and coat each potato and then sprinkle each one with Kosher salt. Place in the oven, directly on the rack. Bake at 350 for approximately 60 minutes

In a large pot, cook your bacon, turning it frequently until just crispy. Leave the grease from the bacon in the pan. In the same pot, melt the butter with the bacon grease, over a low to medium heat, being careful not to burn it. Add the onion and cook until softened.

Add the flour and stir while it cooks for about 3 minutes, using a rubber spatula to loosen any bits of bacon stuck to the bottom.

Slowly add the chicken broth, water, salt, pepper, basil and sugar, bringing to a boil and stirring often with a whisk.
Gradually add the heavy cream until you’ve reached the proper consistency.

Chop the potatoes into bite sized cubes and add to the soup and simmer for approximately 5 minutes to bring the potatoes to temperature.

Ladle the soup into individual bowls and garnish with chopped bacon, chives and the cheese blend.