Toplica soup

The recipe for this dish was provided by the restaurant Vila Toplissa from Varaždinske Toplice.

TOPLICA SOUP

Ingredients:

• 100g homemade smoked bacon
• 100g homemade smoked sausages
• 100g meat from a salted pork belly
• 300g fresh porcini mushrooms
• 50g pork fat
• 50g flour
• 200g onions
• 100g carrots
• 1 teaspoon ground red paprika
• 1 liter water or stock
• Salt
• Pepper
• Bay leaf

Preparation:

1. Cut the onion, carrots, sausages, bacon, salted pork belly meat, and porcini mushrooms into cubes.
2. Fry the onion until it softens and turns golden brown. Then, add the carrots, sausages, bacon, salted pork belly meat, mushrooms, bay leaf, and ground paprika. Stir everything together and fry for a few minutes.
3. Add the flour, mix well, and fry for another 2 minutes on low heat while gradually adding the stock or water.
4. Let the soup simmer on low heat for about 45 minutes, until the carrots are soft.
5. Add salt and pepper towards the end (the homemade salted meat, sausages, and bacon release salt as they cook, so be mindful of this when adding extra salt).
6. Due to its rich content and flavor, this soup can be served as a dish on its own.

Enjoy your Toplica Soup!