Creamy Winter Soup + Candied Pecans and Bacon - a perfectly cozy winter soup that can easily be modified to be Whole30 compliant!
Ingredients
1rutabagapeeled and cut into 1 inch chunks
4yamspeeled and cut into 1 inch chunks
1tablespoonextra virgin olive oil
3teaspoonskosher saltdivided
6slicesthick-cut baconcut into chunks
1red oniondiced
5cupsvegetable stock
1celery stalkchopped
1 ½teaspoonsground coriander
⅛teaspoonground cinnamon
⅛teaspoonground sage
Candied Pecans and Bacon:
4slicesbacon
½cuppecanschopped
1tablespoongranulated sugar
Serving Suggestion:
french bread slices
Instructions
Prep: Preheat oven to 350℉.
Roast Veggies: Place rutabaga chunks and yam chunks on a sheet pan. Drizzle with 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil and sprinkle with 2 teaspoons kosher salt. Toss to coat. Place in oven and roast for about 30 minutes (we are not looking to fully cook them - just to add a little bit of that "roasting"flavor).
Sauté: In a large soup pot, add chopped bacon and bring to medium heat. Stir fairly continuously until the bacon fat starts to render (about 4-6 minutes). Then add diced onion. Cook and stir until onion cooks down (about 4 minutes).
Boil: Add 5 cups vegetable stock and chopped celery. Bring to boil. Remove vegetables from the oven and add to your soup pot.
Simmer: Add 1 ½ teaspoons ground coriander, ⅛ teaspoon ground cinnamon, ⅛ teaspoon ground sage and 1 teaspoon kosher salt. Mix thoroughly and then cover and let simmer for 30-40 minutes or until vegetables are very soft.
Cool: Remove from heat and let cool. Once mixture has cooled, take out your blender.
Blend: In batches, blend mixture until silky smooth *but be careful!! If you don't let the mixture cool enough it may pop the top off of your blender - make sure it is cool and even then I would recommend keeping a towel over the top of your blender* Once you have blended it all, place back in your soup pot and heat back up.
Make Candied Pecans and Bacon: Cook 4 slices bacon until crispy and then cut into chunks. In a small skillet, add bacon, ½ cup pecans and 1 tablespoon granulated sugar. Mix continuously. Slowly the sugar will start to melt and stick to the bacon and pecans. If it sits too long without stirring, the sugar will stick to the pan and not the ingredients. Once sugar has melted and stuck to bacon and pecans, remove from heat and place in bowl.
Serve: Enjoy the soup hot, with french bread slices and garnish with candied pecans and bacon.