Loaded Chicken Potato Soup

Ingredients

• 2 1/2 pounds russet potatoes
• 1 pound skinless, boneless chicken breast halves, cut into chunks
• 2 tablespoons olive oil, or as needed
• 1 teaspoon salt, plus more to taste
• 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper, plus more to taste
• 1 onion, diced
• 1 cup diced carrots
• 2 stalks celery, diced
• 6 tablespoons butter
• 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 3 cups milk
• 1 cup chicken stock
• 1 cup bite-size broccoli florets
• 1/2 cup bacon bits, divided
• 2 green onions, chopped
• 5 ounces shredded sharp Cheddar cheese, divided
• 1 cup sour cream

Directions

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C).

Prick potatoes with a fork and wrap each potato in aluminum foil.

Bake in the preheated oven until potatoes are tender, 1 1/2 to 2 hours. Cool potatoes until easily handled; scoop insides from skins and discard skins.

Place chicken in a bowl and add enough olive oil to coat; add 1 teaspoon salt and 1/2 teaspoon pepper and toss to coat.

Heat a skillet over medium-high heat; cook and stir chicken until no longer pink in the center and juices run clear, 5 to 10 minutes.

Toss onion, carrots, and celery with enough olive oil to coat in a bowl.

Heat a skillet over medium-low heat; cook and stir onion mixture until tender, 5 to 10 minutes.

Melt butter in a large saucepan over medium-heat. Stir flour into melted butter and cook until lightly browned, 1 to 2 minutes. Pour milk, about 1/4 cup at a time, into butter-flour mixture; cook, stirring constantly, until sauce is thickened, about 10 minutes.

Stir cooked potato, chicken, onion mixture, chicken stock, broccoli, 1/2 of the bacon bits, 1/2 of the green onions, and 4 ounces of the Cheddar cheese into the sauce. Cook soup until heated through and broccoli is tender, about 10 minutes; season with salt and pepper. Stir sour cream into soup and cook until heated through, about 5 minutes.

Ladle soup into serving bowls and top with remaining bacon, green onions, and Cheddar cheese.