Butternut Squash Apple Bacon Soup

Wow do we have a good recipe for you! Seriously anything with Bacon will be good right? Up till about 3 months ago, my wife would have said NO! But I'm proud to say I've converted her into a bacon lover! Her previous opinion of bacon was based on the greasy, flimsy bacon that comes on a fast food breakfast sandwiches. Fortunately for her (and me), I was able to open her eyes with crisp, pan fried, thick cut, smoky, delicious bacon! Since then, I have jumped at every opportunity to add bacon to meals that I though would be good. Everything from BLT with fresh homemade bread, and tomatoes and lettuce from the garden, to bacon cheese burgers with a chipotle ketchup! Sorry I didn't blog about the burger... It was amazing! I have to keep some recipes for myself right? Anyway, our latest creation was this delicious butternut squash soup. Its a savory soup with a subtle sweetness and a nice smoky bacon flavor. We made this dish based on a number of recipe ideas that we found, and we were very glad it turned out so well. This is perfect for the fall. We hope you enjoy it as much as we did...

Equipment needed:

Stock pot

Frying pan

Immersion Blender

Ingredients needed:

8 slices bacon

2 Tbs. of the bacon grease

2-1/2 lb. butternut squash (about 1 medium), peeled, seeded, and cut into 1/2-inch cubes

1 small Granny Smith or other tart-sweet apple, peeled, cored, and cut into 1/2-inch dice

1 Tbs. finely chopped fresh sage leaves

2 Tbs. Olive oil

1/2 large sweet onion diced coarse

1/2 tsp. freshly ground black pepper

a pinch of curry powder

1/2 Tbs. Garlic powder

1/2 tsp. salt

4 cups chicken broth

In a frying pan set over medium heat, cook the bacon, flipping occasionally, until crisp and golden. Use tongs to transfer the bacon to a plate lined with paper towels. Once they are cool, coarsely chop the bacon.

In the stock pot, add the 2 Tbs. of olive oil and about 2 Tbs. of the bacon grease from the pan.

Increase heat to medium high. Add the squash and the onions to the pot with the bacon fat and olive oil and cook until the squash is starting to brown and the onions are translucent and starting to brown (Don't stir it too often or it won’t brown).

Stir in the apple, sage, and pepper and allow more browning occur. Add the broth to deglaze the pot, scraping up any browned bits in the pot with a wooden spoon. Add the garlic powder, salt, and curry powder. Bring to a boil over high heat, reduce the heat to maintain a simmer, and cook covered until the squash and apples are very soft. Remove from the heat and add about seven slices worth of the chopped bacon to the soup and purée, using an immersion blender. Taste and add more salt and pepper if needed. Serve and garnish each serving with the remaining chopped bacon. Enjoy!