Leek & Potato Soup

Another simple yet tasty soup recipe. I love taking soup to work now it has got so dark, cold and miserable outside. It’s so nice to have something warm and comforting for lunch as apposed to sandwiches.

I used the whole of the leeks in this soup, green tops and all, rather than just the white ends and it’s this, along with some dark coloured vegetable stock, which have resulted in a light brown coloured soup compared to the creamy whiteness of some potato soups. This way I have no wastage and it makes the soup more of an appealing colour. It also gives more of a contrast to the potato cubes I saved to garnish the top. I served it with some of the potato and pesto bread I recently made for the last daring Bakers challenge.

Leek & Potato Soup

Ingredients
2 large potatoes
3 large leeks
1 large onion
1 tbsp olive oil
Small knob of butter
2½ pints vegetable stock
1 tbsp cream
Dried mixed herbs
Salt and pepper to taste

Method
Place the oil and butter into a large pan and allow to melt.
Meanwhile, peel and roughly dice the onion. Add the onion and mixed herbs to the pan, stir to coat in the buttery juices and cover with a lid to allow to sweat.
Wash and slice the leeks, making sure to remove any dirt that has become trapped between the leaves.
Peel and slice the potatoes into batons and add to the pan along with the leeks. Give everything a good stir to ensure it’s not stuck to the base of the pan and replace the lid.
Cook for 10 minutes before stirring in the vegetable stock and allowing to simmer until the potatoes are completely cooked, around 30 minutes.
Remove a few of the potato batons, slice into small squares and set to one side to garnish the soup later.
Puree the rest of the soup using a hand blender or liquidiser until smooth. Stir in the cream and season to taste.
Serve, scattered with the potato cubes and some nice chewy bread.