Before I launch into this non-dairy recipe, I feel like you should know: I LOVE DAIRY.  Give me milk, cheese, yogurt, ice cream, lattes, and whipped cream.  I want to eat all the dairy.  Not some of the dairy.  All the dairy.

You should also know that I married a fella who is lactose intolerant.  Since he loves me, he will eat the foods containing dairy that I cook and suffer the consequences.

But since I love him, I try to find substitutes when possible that don’t cause the flavor of the dish to suffer.  Which brings me to…

Rustic Potato Soup (dairy free with gluten free optional substitution)

You will need:

7 medium yukon gold potatoes chopped into 1 – 1 1/2 inch cubes*
3 carrots – chopped
1 yellow bell pepper – chopped
3 celery stalks – chopped
4 cloves garlic – minced
1 medium sweet onion, chopped
7 slices of bacon, cooked and crumbled
8 cups of chicken stock
14 oz (1 can) of coconut milk
3 tbsp flour (or substitute 1 tbsp cornstarch to go gluten free)
2 bay leaves
3 tbsp chopped parsley
Salt, pepper, white pepper, celery salt (to taste)

*(or use baby red potatoes halved or fingerling potatoes or mix and match.  Basically the potato portion needs to add up to to 3 lbs.  Personally I prefer potatoes that do not have to be peeled.  This mama likes to cut down on prep whenever possible.)

1. Cut up bacon and cook in pot until crisp.  Scoop out the bacon and put it aside.  Keep several tablespoons of fat in the pan.

2. Add the celery, onion, carrots, bell pepper, and garlic.  Cook over medium (or lower heat) until the onions are soft.

3. Add potatoes and bay leaves.  Cook for several minutes, stirring regularly.

4. Pour in chicken stock and bring to boil.  Cook until potatoes are soft.

5. Take a potato masher and smoosh the soup together a bit.  The goal here is to thicken up and add good texture to the soup by breaking up some of the potatoes.

6. Mix flour (or cornstarch) with half of the coconut milk until smooth.  Pour into soup.

7.  Add the parsley, coconut milk, and bacon.  Return to boil.

8.  Salt, pepper, and white pepper to taste.  Some folks like their soup spicy, some don’t.  I’m leaving it to you, which you prefer.

Then enjoy.

Keep in mind this recipe is very flexible.  (Important for me since I like to play fast and loose with little things like measuring and including all the ingredients).  Throw in an extra carrot or two, skip the pepper, add a cup of frozen corn… whatever floats your boat.  It will still turn out just fine.

For those of you with a vegan or vegetarian in your life, you can easily make this deliciousness work for them too!  Skip the bacon at the start (use an alternative fat like coconut oil) and use vegetable stock in lieu of chicken stock.  You can always add some facon in at the end to add that bit of flavor.

This will definitely be a repeat item on our menu.