Dillards Garden Room Dutch Potato Soup Copycat Recipes

Steps:

• Heat oil in a large stockpot; add onion, celery, carrots and garlic. Cook over medium heat about 15 minutes, stirring often. Add pepper, bay leaf, and 8 cups of the stock.
• In a separate pan, melt margarine over medium heat. Whisk in flour; cook 10 minutes, whisking occasionally. Add remaining 4 cups stock, whisking to remove any lumps.
• Add thickened stock to vegetable mixture, increase heat to high and bring to a boil.
• Reduce to a simmer and cook until vegetables are soft, about 45 minutes. Remove from heat; stir in potatoes. Stir well; cover and let stand for 30 minutes.
• Salt and pepper to taste.

Steps:

• 1. Over medium-high heat, melt butter in a 3 quart sauce pan. 2. Stir in flour and cook until flour has blended with butter. 3. Add chicken broth and stir constantly until mixture starts to thicken. 4. Add in milk and heat until it starts to simmer, stirring the whole time. 5. Stir in shredded cheese until smooth. 6. Add in potato flakes. 7. Add in LOTS of salt and pepper to taste - it really depends on taste, but I used 2 teaspoons of salt and 2 teaspoons of pepper. Start with a little and go up as you need! 8. Use an immersion blender to blend until smooth, or pour in batches into a blender. 9. At this point, bring your soup to a light boil and add in your diced potatoes. 10. Stir constantly but allow potatoes to cook until they are al dente. You want to make sure you keep stirring so the soup doesn't stick to the bottom of the pot. 11. Alternatively, you can boil the diced potatoes in a separate pot until al dente and add to soup right before serving. 12. Serve soup immediately with cheddar cheese, bacon bits, and green onions.

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 400°F.
• Poke potatoes with a fork several times and bake 1 hour or until tender when pierced.
• Let cool slightly, and when you can touch them without burning your fingers, peel potatoes.
• Melt butter in a large stockpot over medium-low heat.
• Add onions and garlic, cover and let sweat 10 minutes, or until soft- but not brown.
• Add 2/3 of the potatoes and mash using a potato masher right in the pot.
• Add chicken broth, milk, and season to taste with salt & pepper.
• Raise the heat slightly to bring mixture to a low simmer (bubbles forming under the surface, but not a boil), stirring occasionally.
• Chop remaining potatoes into small cubes, add to soup, and stir gently; keep heating until soup warmed through.
• Ladle into serving bowls and garnish with any or all of the optional toppings.