Soupruary 8th: Potato & Leek

To celebrate of the most beautiful day yet of 2009 and a weekend of mega amounts of fun, we sat around and watched television. This soup was positively healing. Relaxation: Own it!

Location:

The penthouse, Northside, Cincinnati, Ohio

Attendees:

Josh, Lauren, Matt, Sebastien, Me

Menu:

Potato & Leek Soup

Mixed Greens (Yeah, we've been eating a lot of mixed greens)

Garlic Bread

Chenin Blanc

Blackberry Ice Cream with Ganache and Golden Raspberries (I used Scharffen Berger bittersweet chocolate for the ganache, and OH. EM. GEE. Yes.)

Entertainment:

Reading Shiv's live-tweet of the Grammy's (e.g. "If you thought Adele was one of the best albums of last year, you have horrible taste (I'm looking at you Nic Harcourt). BORINGAPALOOZA")

Reliving last night's dance till-6 a.m. party through stories and injuries

Experiencing the delight that is a new episode of Flight of the Conchords

The Soup:

I made a topping bar because I thought it would be fun, but honestly it was unnecessary. In fact, I think it distracted from the flavor of the soup and therefore detracted a bit. When I make this next, I'll just serve it with a nice crusty bread. I didn't have enough faith in the soup; I'm ashamed of it, but I'll admit it.

So: DO THIS:

DO NOT DO THIS:

Sebastien said this almost compared to his favorite-ever potato soup at The Soup Kitchen in Amsterdam, and I'm quite happy with "almost." The worst thing about this soup: There was none left over to eat for lunch.

Creamy and delicious, this is the kind of meal my mom always called "stick-to-your-ribs." I have no doubt that come March when I'm allowed to cook whatever I want again, this soup will be on my agenda. And you've never seen a simpler list of ingredients:

Adapted from Cooking Light

2 T butter
3 c thinly sliced leeks

6 c diced Yukon gold potatoes

1 T salt

1 t black pepper

4 c water

1/3 c cream

Melt the butter in a stock pot over medium heat, add the leeks and cook until leeks are tender (about 10 minutes). Add potatoes, salt, pepper, and water, bring to a boil and reduce heat to simmer until potatoes are tender (about 20 minutes). Remove from heat and blend with an immersion blender or in batches in a regular blender (carefully, not completely sealing the lid so you don't have a potato-coated kitchen). Stir in the cream and season with salt and pepper to taste.

Note: This is how I made it, but if you're worried about fat you can leave out the cream. It was silky and lovely before the cream was added and I might make it that way next time.