Hearty Bean and Bacon Soup

OK…the calendar says it’s the beginning of Autumn, but Mother Nature apparently has OTHER ideas. It’s COLD in Iowa. TOO COLD! (Fort Lauderdale is sounding better and better to me…)

So…it was a Saturday, about 11:30am, and I’m COLD and hungry for HOME MADE SOUP. So I reached in my cupboard and refrigerator to see what ingredients I could throw together to have lunch ready by 12:15.

Here are the ingredients I had on hand:
Approx. 8 strips of bacon, diced
onions, garlic, celery, diced
1/2 bag shredded carrots
1/2 of a yellow pepper
1 box vegetable stock
1 cup water
1 large Knorr Beef bouillon cube
fresh ground black pepper (no salt!)
fresh or dried parsley
2 cans Northern beans, rinsed and drained
1/4 to 1/2 bag fresh spinach, chopped
1/4 cup grated Parmesan/Romano cheese

Here’s what I made: Heart Bean and Bacon Soup

First, brown the diced bacon in a thick bottom pot and remove until later. (I don’t know what happened to the picture of the bacon in the pot…but you get the picture…)

Tip: When cooking bacon for a recipe like this, cook the bacon before you add the vegetables. If you throw the onion in with it, the bacon will never get crispy.)

So remove the bacon, but leave the bacon grease in the pot, then start to build your soup…

Tip: If you don’t have one of these kitchen utensils (called a BENCH SCRAPER)…GET ONE! Especially if you hate to sweep or scrub your kitchen floor as much as I do! (Chopped veggies fly EVERYWHERE when you drop them!)

Cook all those veggies until they begin to soften…

Tip: Always rinse canned beans (except for chili beans packed in chili seasonings)…

Does anybody know what this bubbly GOOP is on those beans?? ( I don’t want to know! Just remove it, please!)

Add that stock. And you could sub any flavor…Chicken, Beef, etc.

Toss in those rinsed beans…

Add that bouillion cube and a little more water, depending on how thick you want your soup to be…and simmer for a few minutes.

Chop up something (anything) green. I used spinach, but use what you have (kale, collards, etc).

Throw it in the pot, along with some grated cheese. (It will thicken your soup a little bit and add some flavor.)

Tip: Do not add salt….most of the ingredients you’ve added already contain it! (Bacon, beans, broth, bouillon cube, cheese…)

12:15pm…LUNCH IS READY!

Plenty of time to cook from scratch….and you probably already have the ingredients you need…right in your cupboard and your refrigerator! Bon Apetit!

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