Potato Leek Soup

With most of the vegetable garden just starting, it seemed odd that I still had leeks leftover from last year waiting to be pulled. Then again, they do require a lot longer than most other vegetables.

In an effort to clear out the last corner of one of the garden boxes in preparation for new plantings, I decided to make Potato Leek Soup yesterday. Now, I had never made this soup before and honestly it has always intrigued me how you could take two ingredients and make a meal out of it. So I walked up to the vegetable garden with my handy weed digger to uproot the leeks and pulled up four of them, which from being over-wintered had grown quite nice in size. Then again, they were planted a year ago.

Before bringing them into the house I washed off the roots of as much excess soil as I could with the garden hose. I snipped off all of the dark greens, sliced them in half lengthwise and submerged them in cold water to soak for about ten minutes to allow any soil that may have gotten trapped inside while it grew. This allows the dirt and sand particles to sink to the bottom, and is a must when working with leeks because of their growth pattern. And now that they were clean, I was ready to start making the soup.

Potato Leek Soup

Ingredients

1½ tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons water
4 large leeks chopped, the dark tough greens cut off
2 medium russet potatoes, peeled and thinly sliced
2½ cups vegetable stock or water
¼ - ½ cup cream
salt and pepper to taste

In a 3 quart soup pot, melt the butter and water over low heat and cook the leeks until softened but not browned, about 20 minutes, stirring occasionally. Stir in the potatoes, vegetable stock and/or water, bring to a boil then lower heat and let simmer about 30 minutes or until the potatoes are tender. Using a food processor or blender, process about three-quarters of the soup until smooth, returning to the pot, add the cream, salt and pepper and reheat until hot. Add more water, stock or cream to thin to desired consistency and enjoy hot, room temperature or cold. Recipe is easily doubled.

I also made some extra sharp white cheddar cheese bread with slices of a baguette by simply sprinkling the cheese over the baguette slices and broiling for about a minute until bubbly, which was a perfect accompaniment. If you prefer a non-vegetarian soup, make with chicken stock and add a cup of diced ham, which should pair well with the flavors.