Chilled Spring Pea Soup

By [e-mail]

Ingredients

• 8 slices bacon
• 1 T olive oil
• 2 celery ribs, thinly sliced
• 1 onion, thinly sliced
• 1 leek, thinly sliced
• 5 C chicken stock
• 2 rosemary sprigs
• Salt & pepper
• 1/2 lb sugar snap peas, thinly sliced
• 2 10 oz boxes frozen peas
• 1/4 C parsley
• 1 C heavy cream or evaporated milk
• 1 clove minced garlic

Details

Servings 6

Preparation

Step 1

In med soup pot, cook bacon over mod heat til browned & crisp, @ 6 min. Transfer to plate. Pour off fat in pot.
In same pot, heat olive oil. Add celery, onion & leek & cook over mod lo heat, stirring occasionally, til softened but no browned, @ 7 min. Add chicken stock, 4 slices of cooked bacon, 1 rosemary sprig & pinch of salt & pepper. Simmer til vegetables are very tender, @ 15 min. Discard bacon & rosemary. Using slotted spoon, transfer veggies to blender.
Meanwhile, bring med saucepan of salted water to boil. Add sugar snaps & cook 3 min.; drain. Add sugar snaps, baby peas & parsley to blender & puree tol smooth, adding few tablespoons of broth to loosen mixture. Transfer soup & remaining broth to large bowl set in larger bowl of ice water to cool.
In small saucepan, braing evaporated milk, garlic & remaining rosemary sprig to boil. Simmer over lo heat til slightly reduced, @ 5 min. Stain garlic cream into bowl & let cool.
Ladle chilled soup into bowls, drizzle with garlic cream. Crumble remaining bacon into each bowl & serve.