A Recipe for Asparagus, Potato, Cheese Soup with Bacon

This recipe makes a generous quantity of a silky, decadent soup. It is a creamed soup base with tasty asparagus spears, tangy cheese, golden brown potatoes, and savory bacon pieces. The ingredients are fairly simple but the method is a bit involved. It takes time and effort to make but the end result is definitely worth it.

Ingredients:

1/2 lb bacon
2 lbs potatoes - peeled and cubed
1 small onion diced
1 small clove garlic diced
2 cups chicken stock
1 tsp celery salt
1 1/2 lbs fresh asparagus
1 cup sharp cheddar cheese shredded
1/2 cup shredded parmesan, asiago, or romano cheese
1/4 cup crumbled feta cheese
2 cups ice cold whole milk
1 tray of ice cubes
1 tbsp lemon juice
Salt to taste

Method:

Cook the bacon in a large, deep skillet until done. Remove the bacon and all but about three tablespoons of bacon grease.

Add the potatoes to the skillet and cook at medium heat until golden brown flipping them to prevent burning.

Add the diced garlic and onion and cook until slightly translucent. Remove about half of the potatoes and reserve for later.

Add the chicken stock and celery salt and bring to a boil.

Cut off the spears (tops) of the asparagus and reserve for later. Chop the asparagus stalks and add to the pot. Turn the heat down so the soup simmers.

Dice the cooked bacon putting about half into the soup and reserving half.

Cook until the asparagus and the potatoes are mushy.

Remove from heat.

Add the cheese, stirring to melt it with the residual heat. Then add the cold milk and ice cubes, stirring to melt the ice cubes. When the soup has reached bath temperature or cooler put the soup into a blender in batches, pureeing it mercilessly. I gauge this by the bacon - if I can't distinguish particles of bacon, it is pureed enough. Taste it to be sure, the soup should be creamy, not gritty. Add the batches of pureed soup to a soup pot on medium heat as you go.

Bring the pureed soup to a simmer, stirring frequently, and add the reserved chopped bacon and the asparagus spears. Cook until the asparagus spears are done to your satisfaction. This will vary widely by personal taste. Add the reserved browned potatoes. Add the lemon juice and salt to taste.

This makes about eight to ten servings.

*notes: I tried using an emulsifier but it left gritty bits of bacon in the soup.