Farmer's Cheese Soup

                        4 tablespoons butter or olive oil
                        1/4 cup onion, finely chopped
                        2 carrots, scraped & diced into 1/4 pieces
                        2 potatoes, diced into 1/4 pieces (1/2 lb)
                        1/2 lb cauliflower, trimmed & cut into florets
                        1/4 lb celeriac, peeled & diced into 1/4 pieces
                        6 cups chicken stock
                        4 slices lean bacon
                        4 slices white home style bread
                        4 ounces gouda cheese, sliced to 1/8-inch thick (wax removed)
         In a Dutch oven, melt the butter over medium heat; add vegetables and sauté
                        until onion is golden  brown (5-7 minutes).
         Pour in the stock; bring to a boil over high heat.
           1. Partially cover pan, and lower heat.
           2. Simmer until vegetables are tender crisp (20 minutes).
           3. In a heavy skillet, fry the bacon over medium heat until brown and crisp around the edges,
               and most of the fat has cooked off.
           4. Transfer to paper towels to drain.
           5. Fry the bread in the bacon grease so that it is crisp and brown on both sides.
           6. Transfer to paper towels to drain.
           7. Preheat-broiler to its highest setting.
           8. Float the bacon on top of the soup, and top each slice with a piece of the fried bread.
           9. Arrange cheese slices over top, covering bread and surface of soup completely.
          10. Slide dutch oven into broiler so top is about 3 inches from heat source
                and broil until cheese melts and turns a light golden brown (2-3 minutes).