Butternut Squash-White Bean Soup

I made this tonight for dinner and totally loved every bite! Such an interesting combo of flavors that work together really well. I got this from Cooking Light, but tweaked it a little, as always, so this is what I came up with. The wine is a must to get the wonderful flavor of this soup. If you have to, you can use cooking wine that you can get in the vinegar aisle, but real wine tastes the best. Enjoy!

8 bacon slices
1 c chopped onion
2/3 c chopped celery
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 1/2 lbs butternut squash, peeled and chopped small (I used 1 med. squash)
1/4 c dry white wine (I used Sake-it's what I had on hand)
4 c chicken broth or bouillon
1 t cumin
1/4 t ground red pepper
pinch of cinnamon
pinch of ground cloves
1/2 c heavy cream
1 t salt
1/4 t fresh ground black pepper
2 (15 oz) cans Great Northern beans, rinsed & drained

-Cook bacon in large pot until crisp. Remove from pot. Pour out bacon grease, keeping a good amount on bottom of pan (I did 5 t)and then add onion, celery, and garlic. Cook a few minutes until tender; add squash and continue cooking 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add wine and cook another 5 minutes to reduce a little. Then add remaining ingredients except for the cream. Simmer for maybe 15 minutes or so until the veggies are nice and tender. Add cream and bring to a boil then remove from heat.

-Crumble bacon and sprinkle on top of bowls of soup. Serves 8.