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Hearty Cream of Potato Soup is comforting and filling, just what you want on a cold winter night. Lots of potatoes, fresh herbs, and savory flavors, plus cream cheese to make it silky-smooth are what make this cream of potato soup recipe a standout.
Why You’ll Love This Cream of Potato Soup Recipe
This easy and flavor-packed cream of potato soup recipe will become part of your winter soup arsenal. In about half an hour you’ll have a rich and filling bowl of soup ready for dinner. Here’s why you’ll love this creamy potato soup:
- Amazing texture. Potatoes have a fantastic ability to break down when they’re cooked, and when you whiz them with broth they take on a beautifully smooth texture. This soup delivers big on soothing, creamy texture and flavor.
- Easy ingredients. The simple ingredients needed to make this cream of potato soup – a few vegetables, lots of potatoes, a little cream cheese, and half-and-half – will be readily available at your grocery store, making prep easy.
- Adaptable. I’ve included some suggestions below for how to adapt this soup to any dietary needs. It’s already naturally gluten-free, so you won’t have to worry if you keep gluten-free.
Cuisine Inspiration: American
Primary Cooking Method: Stovetop
Dietary Info: Gluten-free
Skill Level: Easy
Recipe Ingredients
Here’s a glance at what you need to make this creamy potato soup. Be sure to scroll to the recipe card at the end of this post for the full ingredient amounts.
- Butter: You can use salted or unsalted butter.
- Savory Vegetables: Onion, celery, and garlic form the base of the soup.
- Potatoes: I prefer Yukon Gold potatoes in this recipe.
- Salt and Pepper
- Broth: Chicken broth gives a depth of flavor, or you can use vegetable broth.
- Aromatics: Fresh thyme and bay leaves.
- Cayenne Pepper: For a pinch of heat. You can omit this if you wish.
- Cream Cheese: Use block cream cheese rather than whipped cream cheese.
- Half-and-half: Or use whole milk.
- Optional Garnishes: Crumbled bacon, sliced green onions, shredded cheddar cheese.
How to Make Cream of Potato Soup
Follow along with my easy method for creamy potato soup. The detailed instructions will be in the recipe card lower down.
- Cook the vegetables. Sauté the onions and celery in butter until tender, then stir in the garlic.
- Add potatoes. Stir in the potatoes, season with salt and pepper, cover with the broth, and add the aromatics.
- Add cream cheese. Stir in the cream cheese and pour in the half-and-half.
- Blend. Use an immersion blender or blender to blend half of the soup until it’s thick and creamy, reserving half of the potatoes to stir back in.
- Serve! Serve the soup hot, and top portions with crumbled bacon, shredded cheddar cheese, and green onions.
Tips for the Best Cream of Potato Soup
Follow these tips to make the absolute creamiest and tastiest potato soup:
- Cook on low heat. Having the heat too high can cause the cream cheese to not melt properly. Turn the heat to a low simmer and the cheese will melt into the broth. After you add dairy to soup, it’s best to lower the heat and not let the soup come to a boil.
- Make this dairy-free. To make a dairy-free cream of potato soup, swap your favorite non-dairy cream cheese for the cream cheese and use a non-dairy milk of choice for the half-and-half.
- Go vegetarian. You can easily make this soup vegetarian! Substitute vegetable broth for the chicken stock. To make it vegan, swap in vegetable broth, skip the cream cheese, and use non-dairy milk.
- Lighten up. You can use whole milk or 2% milk in place of the half-and-half and omit the cream cheese.
- Add a few more vegetables. I love to throw in a handful of baby spinach leaves after I’ve pureed the soup. The soup’s heat quickly wilts the spinach and gives each bowl a pop of color and a little extra flavor.
How to Store Creamy Potato Soup
If you have leftover cream of potato soup, it’s a gift for another time! Here’s how to store it:
- Fridge – Place cooled soup in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days. Potato soup is not recommended for freezing.
- To Reheat – Potato soup can easily be reheated in the microwave for 1-2 minutes in a microwave-safe bowl. Or heat it on the stove in a pot over low heat until hot.
Make It A Meal
A hot bowl of creamy potato soup will warm you from the inside out! Here’s what to serve with it:
- Homemade bread. Bake up a loaf of my Gluten Free Sandwich Bread and serve buttered slices alongside bowls of cream of potato soup. Or try my Gluten Free Naan or Gluten Free Garlic Breadsticks recipes with this potato soup. You can even spoon it into Gluten Free Bread Bowls!
- Biscuits. Whip up some simple and tender Gluten Free Buttermilk Biscuits to dip into a bowl of soup!
- A salad. A rich soup needs a side salad! Try my Winter Feta Fruit Salad, Caprese Zoodles Salad, or Easy Greek Salad recipes.
- Sandwiches. You can serve a simple turkey sandwich on gluten-free bread, or whip up some Ham and Cheese Sliders to go with creamy potato soup.
- Grilled cheese. Make a classic grilled cheese sandwich or try my Kentucky Hot Brown Grilled Cheese Sandwich for a fantastic accompaniment to cream of potato soup.
Cream of Potato Soup
Hearty Cream of Potato Soup is comforting and filling, just what you want on a cold winter night. Lots of potatoes, fresh herbs, and savory flavors, plus cream cheese to make it silky-smooth are what make this cream of potato soup recipe a standout.
Servings: 4 servings
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon unsalted butter
- ½ cup chopped white onion
- ½ cup chopped celery
- 2 cloves cloves garlic , minced
- 6 cups peeled and cubed Yukon Gold potatoes
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon pepper
- 3 cups chicken broth
- ½ teaspoon fresh thyme leaves or ⅛ teaspoon dried thyme
- 2 bay leaves
- ⅛ teaspoon cayenne pepper
- 4 ounces cream cheese , cut into cubes
- 1 cup half and half
- Optional garnishes: crumbled bacon, sliced green onions, shredded cheddar cheese
Instructions
- Heat a large Dutch oven or pot over medium heat. Add the tablespoon of butter and the chopped onion and celery. Sauté the vegetables until tender, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and sauté for an additional 30 seconds being careful to not burn.
- Add the cubed potatoes, salt and pepper to the pot. Cover the potatoes with chicken broth. Add the bay leaves, thyme and cayenne pepper.
- Bring to a simmer and cook until potatoes are fork tender, about 10 minutes.
- Remove the pot from heat. Add the cream cheese and stir to melt into the soup. Pour in the half and half.
- Use an immersion blender to blend part of the potatoes to make the soup thick and creamy leaving half of the potato cubes. Or transfer about half to a blender and blend until smooth, then return to the pot.
- Serve immediately with cooked crumbled bacon, shredded cheddar cheese and green onions.
Nutrition Facts
Cream of Potato Soup
Amount Per Serving
Calories 500
Calories from Fat 180
% Daily Value*
Fat 20g31%
Saturated Fat 12g60%
Trans Fat 0.1g
Polyunsaturated Fat 1g
Monounsaturated Fat 5g
Cholesterol 61mg20%
Sodium 1103mg46%
Potassium 1715mg49%
Carbohydrates 70g23%
Fiber 8g32%
Sugar 8g9%
Protein 12g24%
Vitamin A 780IU16%
Vitamin C 73mg88%
Calcium 156mg16%
Iron 3mg17%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.
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