Homemade Bean and Bacon Soup
I’m a Daddy’s Girl. Always have been, always will be. Don’t get me wrong, I love my mom very dearly, and as I get older, I see the best parts of her in me. I know I’m blessed beyond words to have the parents that I do. But daddy was the first man in my life, and he set a very high bar as a standard for what to look for in a man. Even though it’s been more than 10 years since he’s walked this earth, I still get excited on his birthday. The quirky little memorable things are what I love to celebrate. He loved God, his family, Tab (does anyone remember that diet cola before there was Diet Coke or Pepsi?), butter pecan ice cream, Fritos & bean dip, mom’s chili when it was so spicy that the steam would peel paint, and he always seemed happy.His favorite canned soup was Bean & Bacon. I’m pretty sure that Campbell’s has changed the recipe over the years, because it just doesn’t taste the same, nor does it have the same texture. Our family has been avoiding canned soups since they’re usually high in sodium and other “stuff” that we don’t want as a part of our diet. So when I saw this pin for Homemade Bean and Bacon Soup by Deborah of Taste and Tell, I looked up and smiled into the heavens and told dad that I was going to make this for him.
You know how they say that girls usually marry a man like their dad? Yes! My HH is like my dad in so many ways – including a love of butter pecan ice cream, Fritos & bean dip, HE makes the chili, and he used to drink Tab. And guess what his favorite canned soup is. Go on – guess… Yup! So with my HH cheering me on, and daddy watching from above, let’s get on with this Pin Test!
The Pintesting:
There aren’t a lot of ingredients, which means that the flavors come from simple ingredients and should shine through (I hope).
Cook the bacon until it’s rendered a good amount of fat and is nice and crispy.
Remove the bacon and most of the drippings, leaving a couple of tablespoons of the rendered fat to give flavor and to cook the mirepoix. (That’s equal parts of onions, carrots, and celery.) I seasoned with salt and pepper at this stage rather than waiting until the end. Once the aromatics are softened, add the garlic and cook for another minute.
Add the beans and broth and let it cook for an hour. The recipe says to remove half of the soup and blend in a blender or food processor. That makes a lot of extra dishes and (in my world) potentially puts me in harm’s way. Instead, I used my immersion blender to pulse it enough times that it looks like it was about half blended and half whole beans and veggies.
Add the tomato sauce and 3/4 of the bacon, and let it heat through for another 5 minutes or so.
Serve and garnish with the reserved bacon.
You can’t really see the beans in the bowl because they sink to the bottom and are covered by the broth, but they’re there. (Did you catch that beautifully correct grammar?) I have to say that daddy would have loved this soup – probably a lot more than the canned variety. I know the HH and I did. It was hearty, flavorful, and filling without being heavy. I liked that I could control the sodium levels (and add more bacon garnish, if I want to). So now for the Pintesting results.
The Pintesting Results:
Overall Results: 4.7 Pins
Accuracy: This soup brought back the memory of how the canned name-sake in my past used to taste. It was like a time machine in a bowl. The flavors were spot-on, and the texture was creamy and rich. 5 Pins
Difficulty: The steps weren’t hard, but it’s not something for kids in the kitchen. Cooking bacon can cause grease burns from the popping and splattering if you have the heat too high. Also, the extra step of blending half of the soup, while necessary, comes with its risks. 4 Pins
Time: The prep work only took about 20 minutes, but then add an hour of simmering time after that, plus one more time of heating it through and you’re looking at 1 1/2 hours to make from start to finish. 4 Pins
Cost: This is a great soup if you’re on a budget. The most expensive ingredient was the bacon, which I got on sale for less than $5, and I had leftover bacon for BLTs. I had the rest of the ingredients on hand and the cans of beans were only about $1 each. We can estimate the total cost at $10. The recipe says 4 servings, but the HH and I got 6 good-sized servings from the pot of soup. That’s less than $2 per serving. 5 Pins
Practicality: If you like bacon, or have fond memories of bean and bacon soup, or if you like soup, this is a must-try recipe. My HH and I love this recipe, now one of our favorites, and I’ve made it twice now. 5 Pins
