homemade essentials: italian bacon tomato soup

How To Make homemade essentials: italian bacon tomato soup

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  PREP/PREPARE
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  You will need a good-sized soup pot with a lid, to make this recipe. My first/best recommendation would be a Dutch Oven, but any good soup pot should do just fine.
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  Tomatoes If you can find good homegrown or farmer’s market tomatoes, then that is the way to go. Just blanch, peel, deseed, and you are ready to rock. However, if you use the canned variety, then no worries, because canned tomatoes are one of the items I use quite-a-lot. As a matter of fact, if you use the right “canned” variety they will rival some of the best homegrown varieties. I am including two posts I created that talk about the best canned tomatoes and how to use them in recipes. Check them out when you get a bit of time: https://www.justapinch.com/recipes/soup/soup-other-soup/cooking-class-the-best-canned-tomatoes.html https://www.justapinch.com/recipes/sauce-spread/sauce-spread-other-sauce-spread/removing-the-bitter-taste-from-canned-tomatoes.html
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  Storage This soup does not use cream or dairy products. I wanted the flavors of the tomatoes and spices to shine through, without being diluted by dairy products. Therefore, this soup loves to be frozen. It will stay good in the fridge for 3 – 5 days, and if properly stored in the freezer will keep its fresh flavors for up to six months.
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  Soup Notes This soup is served chunky; however, you can chuck it into a blender and puree it smooth, if you so choose. If you are not planning on going the puree route, then when you are dicing up the bacon, tomatoes, and onions, dice them up to the size you want your “chunks” to be.
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  Gather your ingredients (mise en place).
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  STAGE I
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  Dice the bacon.
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  I find it much easier to dice bacon if it is first frozen.
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  Add to a pot over medium-low heat.
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  When the bacon begins to soften and release its grease (about 12 – 15 minutes), add the two tablespoons of butter. Then allow to slowly cook for an additional 10 minutes, while stirring. Yeah, bacon grease and butter… we are in trouble now.
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  STAGE II
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  Chop, or grate, the onions, and mince the garlic.
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  Add to the pot with the bacon.
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  Stir into the bacon and allow to gently simmer.
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  Stir and simmer until most of the liquid from the onions has evaporated, about 10 – 12 minutes.
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  STAGE III
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  Add all of the dry spices to the pot.
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  I find the best way to accomplish this is to mix all the spices together in a small bowl, and then dump them in all at once.
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  Stir and mix for about 3 – 5 minutes.
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  STAGE IV
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  Add all of the STAGE IV ingredients,
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  Stir to combine.
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  Set to the lowest simmer setting you can, and cover for about 30 minutes.
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  Remove the lid and stir about every 5 minutes.
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  PLATE/PRESENT
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  Serve by itself or garnish with some crackers, sour cream, or whatever you fancy. Enjoy.
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  Keep the faith, and keep cooking.
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