French Cauliflower Soup with Bacon and Herb Garnish

By mm_food4me

Ingredients

• 1 T olive oil
• 1 T butter
• 2 large yellow onions
• 2 garlic cloves
• 3 stalks celery
• 1 tsp fresh thyme, chopped
• 12 oz. cauliflower florets (I cheat and buy the prebroken florets at Trader Joe’s)
• 6 c. chicken broth
• Salt and Pepper

Details

Servings 6
Cooking time 50mins

Preparation

Step 1

Finely chop the onions, garlic, celery and thyme.

In a 4 qt. pot or dutch oven, melt the butter and the olive oil together.

Add the chopped onions, garlic, celery and thyme, a pinch of salt and a grind of pepper. Stir together to coat the vegetables in the butter, then cover and cook, stirring frequently, over low heat for 20 minutes.

Add the cauliflower and broth to the pot. Bring to a boil, cover and reduce heat. Simmer for 20 minutes, or until the cauliflower is soft.

Using a blender or immersion blender, puree the soup until smooth. Serve over garnish, with additional pepper.
Makes 6-8 servings

For the garnish:
Pancetta or thick cut bacon, cut into cubes
Sturdy bread (I like the Pain Pascal from Trader Joe’s), cut into small cubes
raw cauliflower, 1-2 florets, diced into tiny pieces (kitchen shears work admirably)
chives, minced
creme fraiche – 1-2 T per bowl

Fry the pancetta or bacon, then set aside and crisp the bread cubes into croutons in the bacon fat.Pile the croutons, bacon, cauliflower, and chives in a shallow soup bowl. Top with creme fraiche, and ladle hot soup over the whole.