27 July 2013

In Season:Leek & Potato Soup



A welcome quiet weekend with just a few movies to catch at the NZ International Film Festival, leaving the remainder of the weekend to cook, photograph, write & give this little blog a little TLC, a tad lacking the last week or so with me jetting off to Melbourne for a long weekend full of fun, food & shopping.

I was in the mood for soup & there were leeks in the weekly veggie box. So leek & potato soup it would be. One of Winter’s treats & a welcome change to an assortment of pumpkins & a plethora of greens that have become regular features in amongst the Winter veggies.  It get’s to the last stretch of Winter & they start to lose a little of their allure as I count down the days to Spring.


The leek is a sister to the onion, the white stalk delicate; sweet & tender but don’t forget the green bits. I can’t bring myself to throw half the leek away & the green bit are just fine in stocks or soups. Be gentle when cooking leeks, unlike their sister the onion they are not so nice if browned but come in to their own when a little care is taken, a few more minutes & a medium low heat, preferably in some melted butter with just a little sea salt.


Leek & Potato Soup

Serves 6

Ingredients 

6 leeks
4 medium potatoes, I used agria, peeled & rinsed
100g unsalted butter
1 onion, finely sliced
3 garlic cloves, chopped
1 ltr hot chicken stock
3-4 tbsp cream
Salt & white pepper

To serve
Cream
Parsley, finely chopped
Blue Cheese - optional


Directions

Cut off & discard the roots & dark green tops of the leeks, but leave behind the light green.  Cut the leeks lengthways & then slice across into fine strips. Rinse the leeks in cold water to remove any grit & then pop them into a colander to drain.  Cut the potatoes into wedges & & slice them finely.


Heat 100g of the butter in a large pan over a medium heat until it foams.  Add the onion & the garlic cook for a few minutes until translucent but not coloured.  Add the leeks & season with salt & pepper, give everything a stir, cover & cook for 8-10 minutes, stirring every now & then.


Add the potatoes & add the stock.  Bring to the boil & cook for another 10 minutes until both the potatoes & leeks are cooked through & soft.  Blitz the soup with a hand blender until smooth & add the cream & blitz again.  For super silky smooth soup pass the soup through a sieve.

Taste & if need be adjust the seasoning.  Served topped with a swirl of cream, a little parsley & if you like, I think a few crumbles of blue cheese would be a quite delicious topping.



Et voila a velvety smooth leek & potato soup. Serve alongside some crusty bread & a perfect light lunch for a wintry weekend.


If you like this you might like this Vegetable Soup
Three years ago Supper Club #2

Enjoy!



7 comments:

  1. Yum - leek and potato is one of my absolute favourite soups. I especially love that it doesn't take hours of simmering - pretty much half and hour chopping board to bowl, max!

    Beautiful photos xo

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    Replies
    1. Thanks Sue....quick & easy is good! Hope you hare having happy travels! xoxo

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  2. Lovely, I made leek and potato too this week for the shop which meant I got eat quite a bit ;0)

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    Replies
    1. Thanks Alli, not much beats a good bowl of soup!

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  3. I keep talking to my leeks to get them to fatten up a little more before I start my annual splurge of leek and potatoe. You are so right about taking care. Those sweeties love a bit of gentle handling.

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    Replies
    1. A little TLC for sure, hope your leeks fatten up soon :) They do make such a lovely soup & just a touch of cream makes it feel so wonderfully lush & a little decadent :)

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