Bean, Bacon, and Pepper Soup

Bean, Bacon, and Pepper Soup
AllRecipes.com

5 slices bacon
3 onions, chopped
2 carrots, chopped
1 red bell pepper, chopped
2 stalks celery, chopped
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 teaspoon white sugar
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/4 teaspoon ground cayenne pepper
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon onion powder
1 bay leaf
1 teaspoon dried thyme
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
4 cups chicken broth
2 (15 ounce) cans cannellini beans, with liquid
1/2 cup chopped parsley

In a large pot over medium high heat, saute the bacon until crisp. Drain the fat, leaving about 2 tablespoons in the pot. Crumble the bacon, reserving for later for garnish. Add the onions, carrots, red bell pepper, celery and garlic to the pot and saute in the bacon fat for 10 minutes.

Stir in the sugar, ground black pepper, cayenne pepper, garlic powder, onion powder, bay leaf, thyme and Worcestershire sauce. Now pour in just a small amount of chicken stock to deglaze the pan. (Note: This removes all of the caramelized particles from the bottom of the pan.)

Add the beans and the rest of the stock and continue to cook over medium high heat for 10 to 15 minutes, or until all vegetables are tender.

In a food processor or blender, puree 3 cups of soup at a time, adjusting seasoning if necessary. Return all pureed soup to the pot, stir in the parsley and crumbled bacon and simmer for 10 more minutes.

I made some minor changes (Surprised?). Slightly more or less of the different veggies based on what we had (Robin sometimes uses items in the fridge that he didn't ask to be put on the grocery list.) and what I felt was a good balance for our tastes. We never guy garlic or onion powder so I left those out. We were almost out of Rooster Worcestershire sauce so there wasn't as much as it called for. I only pureed some of it with an immersion blender because we don't care too much for completely pureed soup. We all really liked this soup. It was sweet and spicy and nicely balanced. I loved hearing Collin say; "BEAN!!" then happily pop it into his mouth. Oh that reminds me, I accidentally put in one can of cannellini beans and one of mayocoba beans - don't think it really made a difference.

Kid Ratings:

Christopher Robin
Collin
Isaac
Annette