Ingredients:

  Amount  Measure       Ingredient -- Preparation Method
--------  ------------  --------------------------------
  5              whole  garlic heads
  2                     bacon slices -- diced
  1                cup  diced onion
  1                cup  diced carrot
  2                     garlic cloves -- minced
  6               cups  diced baking potato (about 2 pounds)
  4               cups  low-salt chicken broth
     1/2      teaspoon  salt
     1/4      teaspoon  pepper
  1                     bay leaf
  1                cup  milk
     1/4           cup  chopped fresh parsley

Preparation:

Remove white papery skin from each garlic head (do not peel or separate cloves). Wrap each head separately in aluminum foil. Bake at 350 degrees for 1 hour; let cool for 10 minutes. Separate cloves, and squeeze to extract 1/4 cup of garlic pulp; discard the skins. Cook bacon in a large saucepan over medium-high heat until crisp. Add onion, carrot, and minced garlic, and saute 5 minutes. Add potato, broth, salt, pepper, and bay leaf; bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer 20 minutes or until potato is tender; remove bay leaf. Combine garlic pulp and 2 cups potato mixture in a blender or food processor, and process until smooth. Return puree to pan; stir in milk, and cook over low heat until thoroughly heated. Remove from heat, and stir in chopped parsley. Thickened by mashed potatoes, this rich soup gets its hearty, smoky flavor from the addition of bacon and garlic. 7 1 cup servings

Nutritional Information:

475 Calories (kcal); 25g Total Fat; (34% calories from fat); 60g Protein; 49g Carbohydrate; 44mg Cholesterol; 1607mg Sodium