Ale and Cheddar Soup

"I found this recipe on Pinterest.  The original came from HERE and they adapted it from Food and Wine.  This soup was awesome.  I served it with burgers for the family and the rest of the 1 lb package of bacon was used for the burgers.  Next time I would like to try it with dark brown ale as suggested in the original, but I didn't find that out until I traced the version I used back to the original."

INGREDIENTS:

 1/2 pound thick cut bacon (plus a couple pieces crumbled as a garnish)
 1 onion, diced
 2 stalks celery, diced
 4 jalapeno peppers, diced (I used mild from a jar...about 3/4 cup)
 2 cloves garlic, chopped
 1 teaspoon fresh thyme, chopped (I used dried since it was what I had on hand)
 2 tablespoons butter
 1/4 cup flour
 1 (~12 ounce) bottle/can ale
 2 cups chicken broth
 1/2 cup heavy cream (I used 1/2 and 1/2)
 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
 2 cups cheddar cheese, shredded
 cayenne to taste (I omitted this and was glad since it was spicy enough)
 salt and pepper to taste

DIRECTIONS:

Cook the bacon in a pan over medium heat and set aside on paper towels to drain, reserving 1-2
tablespoons of the grease in the pan.
Over medium-high heat saute the onion, celery, garlic and jalapeno in the reserved bacon grease and cook until tender, about 10 minutes.
In a large pot over medium heat,  melt the butter then sprinkle in the flour and let it cook until it starts to turn golden brown, about 2-3 minutes.  Add the ale followed by the broth and bacon and let cook for 10 minutes.
Add the cream, mustard, Worcestershire sauce, and cheese and cook until the cheese has melted but do not bring it back to a boil.
Season with thyme, cayenne, salt and pepper to taste. Garnish with  crumbled bacon.

Serves 6