Pumpkin Squash Leek Bean And Bacon Soup Food

PUMPKIN & BACON SOUP

Steps:

• In a large, heavy-bottomed pan, heat the oil with 25g butter. Add the onion and a pinch of salt and cook on a low heat for 10 mins or until soft. Add 60g bacon and cook for a further 5 mins until the bacon releases its fat. Then increase the heat to medium, add the pumpkin and stock and season. Bring to the boil, then reduce the heat to a simmer, cover with a lid and cook for about 40 mins until the pumpkin is soft. Pour in the cream, bring to the boil again and remove from the heat. Set aside some of the liquid, then blend the remaining pumpkin until smooth and velvety, adding liquid back into the pan bit by bit as you go (add more liquid if you like it thinner). Strain through a fine sieve, check the seasoning and set aside.
• Melt the remaining butter in a pan over a high heat and fry the rest of the bacon with black pepper for 5 mins. Divide the bacon between four bowls, reheat the soup and pour over. To serve, sprinkle over the pumpkin seeds and drizzle with maple syrup.

PUMPKIN (SQUASH), LEEK, BEAN AND BACON SOUP

Steps:

• Heat oil in a dutch oven or large, deep saucepan that can hold all the ingredients.
• Lightly fry the chopped bacon. Remove and set aside. If the bacon has released a lot of fat, drain off as much as you wish.
• Reheat the remaining oil/bacon fat. Add sliced leek and onion and crushed garlic, and saute until tender.
• Add chopped pumpkin and saute for five minutes, stirring frequently.
• Add stock, beans, bacon, tarragon, thyme and chili flakes.
• Bring to a boil, then lower heat and simmer uncovered for 20 minutes, or until pumpkin is fork tender.
• Add 1/4 cup parsley.
• Zap the cooked mixture with a stab blender or buzz up in a food processor. Or crush with a potato masher. The choice depends on your consistency preferences.
• Stir in cream (if used), and season with salt and pepper to taste. Reheat gently.
• Ladle into bowls and garnish with sour cream and additional parsley or coriander (cilantro).

BEAN AND BACON SOUP

Steps:

• Preparation Check the beans for stones.
• Pour boiling water over beans and let stand 1 hour or soak overnight and drain.
• Finely chop the bacon ends and pieces, or fat saved from a smoked ham, and cook it on a medium fire in a big pot to render the fat.
• Be sure the crumbs of fat are nicely browned, like crisp bacon.
• Add the cut up veggies (you can change the amounts to suit yourself, and add others too, ad lib) and saute in the fat.
• Add a few cloves of mashed garlic if you like it.
• Drain the beans and rinse them.
• Add the water or stock, beans and ham hock and herbs and spices.
• Bring to the boil, simmer for 1 1/2 to 2 hours, maybe even more depending on beans, until they are very tender.
• Cut the fat and skin from the ham hock and dice it and return to the soup.
• I often cook a couple of extra ones and have beans and hocks as a meal.
• Season with salt and pepper.
• You can skim the fat, but in the cold winter, it tastes good.
• The colder it is, the better you will like fatty soups.
• If you cook it long enough, the beans and everything will break down and puree, combining with the fat to make a"creamy" consistency, that is much admired by"beanies.
• "I like to finish the soup with sliced kielbasa.

LEEK AND PUMPKIN SOUP

Steps:

• Melt butter in a heavy casserole. Add the leeks and saute slowly, over low heat, until they are tender but not brown. Stir in the garlic.
• Add the pumpkin and water, cover and simmer until the pumpkin is tender, 35 to 40 minutes. Allow the mixture to cool for 15 minutes, then puree in one or two batches in a food processor.
• Return the puree to the casserole, add the milk and season to taste with salt and pepper. Reheat before serving. Sprinkle each serving with chives.

LEEK & BUTTER BEAN SOUP WITH CRISPY KALE & BACON

Steps:

• Heat 1 tbsp oil in a large saucepan over a low heat. Add the leeks, thyme and seasoning. Cover and cook for 15 mins until softened, adding a splash of water if the leeks start to stick. Add the butter beans with the water from the cans, the stock and mustard. Bring to the boil and simmer for 3-4 mins until hot. Blend the soup in a food processor or with a stick blender, stir through the parsley and check the seasoning.
• Put the bacon in a large, non-stick frying pan over a medium heat. Cook for 3-4 mins until crispy, then set side to cool. Add the remaining 1 tsp oil to the pan, and tip in the kale and hazelnuts. Cook for 2 mins, stirring until the kale is wilted and crisping at the edges and the hazelnuts are toasted. Cut the bacon into small pieces, then stir into the kale mixture.
• Reheat the soup, adding a splash of water if it is too thick. Serve in bowls sprinkled with the bacon & kale mixture.

CABBAGE, LEEK, BEAN, AND BACON SOUP

Steps:

• Soak all beans over night or 8 hours in water. Drain, rinse, and set aside until needed.
• Pre-heat oven to 400 degrees. Cut top off of bulb of garlic so that all tops of cloves are exposed. Place bulb in foil or in small ramekin. Drizzle 1 tbs of olive oil on top of garlic. Salt and pepper. Place in oven and roast until tops are slightly browned - about 20-30 minutes. When roasted, set aside to cool.
• While garlic is cooling, coat bottom of stockpot with remainder of olive oil. Heat olive oil Medium. Place onion in stockpot and salt. Sweat onion while halving and slicing leek. Place leek in stockpot and stir. Add bacon to stockpot. Squeeze roasted garlic out of bulb and into stockpot and stir, smashing the cloves as you go. Salt and pepper and sautee until leeks and onions are soft and bacon is just about to start browning. You don't want the bacon raw and you don't want it browned - get it somewhere in between.
• As the above mixture is sauteeing, shred cabbage. Add cabbage and stir until all is coated with oil and bacon grease.
• Stir in water and chicken stock and set stove temp to Medium High. Add bean mixture and rice and bring soup to a boil.
• Boil until beans and rice are tender. Skim any bubbles off of the top of the soup throughout cook time. Serve when satisfied with all the textures in the soup.