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Creamy potato-fennel soup with bacon

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Verdict: Good to okay, but not memorable. Made once.

Serves 3 · about 40 minutes · Source: adapted from Gimme Some Oven's potato bacon fennel soup, scaled to 3, with part of the pot blended and cream added

Ingredients

• 3 oz bacon (about 3 thick-cut strips), cut into ½-inch pieces
• 1 fennel bulb, thinly sliced, fronds reserved
• 1 small onion, diced
• 2 tsp fennel seeds
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 4 cups chicken or vegetable broth
• 1 lb Yukon gold potatoes, cut into bite-size pieces
• 2 tsp minced fresh rosemary (or about ¾ tsp dried)
• ¼ tsp red pepper flakes
• 1/3 cup heavy cream
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper
• Optional: chopped chives

Method

1. Heat a large pot over medium-high. Sauté the 3 oz bacon until crispy. Lift it onto a paper-towel-lined plate and leave the fat behind.
2. Add the sliced fennel, the diced onion and 2 tsp fennel seeds to the fat. Sauté 5 to 7 minutes, stirring every minute or two, until the edges brown. Add 3 minced garlic cloves and cook 2 to 3 minutes more.
3. Add 4 cups broth, 1 lb potatoes, 2 tsp rosemary, ¼ tsp red pepper flakes and a few twists of black pepper. Bring to a simmer, cover, and cook about 10 minutes, until the potatoes are fork-tender.
4. Scoop out about 1½ cups of soup, mostly potatoes, and blend until smooth. Stir it back in. Or purée roughly a third of the pot with an immersion blender.
5. Stir in 1/3 cup cream. Warm through gently without boiling.
6. Taste, then salt. The bacon is already salty.
7. Serve topped with the bacon, chopped fennel fronds and chives.

Notes

• Sausage was tried and cut. It is redundant next to the bacon and awkward in a part-blended soup.