Roasted Cauliflower Soup

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My thoughts on soup/any food: if it has bacon in it, I pretty much love it. Anything that is a vessel for bacon = perfection. And this roasted cauliflower soup is just that... and its phenomenal. I based the soup off of a Bon Appetit (Jan 2007) recipe, and messed around with my food processor to make the chive oil. Its gooooood.

SOUP INGREDIENTS
6 cups cauliflower florets (from 1 large head of cauliflower)
3 slices uncooked bacon, plus more for crumbling
3/4 cup diced celery
1 cup diced onion
3 garlic cloves, minced
4 cups chicken broth
3 tablespoons grated romano
1/4 cup cream/half-and-half
salt and pepper

CHIVE OIL INGREDIENTS
1/4 cup olive oil
2 teaspoons butter, softened
1 teaspoon lemon juice
bunch of chives
salt and pepper

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Line a rimmed baking sheet with lightly greased tin foil and throw the cauliflower florets, a drizzle of olive oil, a few shakes of garlic powder, and salt and pepper in the pan. Toss to coat and roast for about 30 minutes, stirring every 10.

Meanwhile, cook 3 strips of bacon in a large soup pot on medium heat until lightly browned and some of the fat has rendered. Add the diced celery, onion, garlic and salt and pepper, and stir to combine. Cover and let cook until veggies begin to soften, about 7 minutes, stirring occasionally, and adding olive oil if they start to burn. Add the roasted cauliflower florets to the soup pot, along with the chicken broth, and the romano/good parmesan and stir to combine. Reduce heat to low and cover and let simmer for another 10-15 minutes to let all the flavors marry.

In another pan, cook more bacon to your liking to crumble on top of the soup. Once finished cooking, let  cool on a paper towel and crumble for topping. Reserve for later.

Once the soup has simmered for a bit blend with an immersion blender (or put batches in the stand blender) and blend until smooth. Add more chicken broth if its too thick. Add the cream/half-and-half and stir to combine. Taste for salt and pepper.

To make the chive oil... In a food processor combine the olive oil, butter, chives and lemon juice and blend until incorporated and smooth... you may have to scrape down the sides a few times.

Ladle into soup bowl and drizzle the chive oil on top, followed by bacon crumbled. Mmm-mmm-mmm. And man is this soup filling!