Leeky Pea Soup

How gross does that sound? hehehehehehehehehe sorry, it's been a long day. 

Some days, work just doesn't...uhh...work. At least not quite the way you think it will. Today was highly productive, but I didn't get anything on my list done until I got back to work around 10pm. On my walk home, I found myself daydreaming about how incredibly nice it would be to go up to Kaze for dinner and let somebody wait on me for an hour or so. But as soon as I stood in front of the stove for a few minutes, I was reminded it was exactly where I wanted to be.

No matter what happens during your day at work, you can can come home and control exactly what happens on in your kitchen. Even if you catch something on fire, you can put it out (so strong and brave!) and pride yourself in what you can salvage (so resourceful!).

The impetus for making this soup was seeing some lovely fresh English peas at Findlay Market this weekend. That reminded me of a Michael Symon recipe for ricotta gnocchi with fresh peas and morels which I'd made/loved once. How to translate that?

I didn't want to get too complicated in the soup form, so I left out the morels. 

Real Talk: there were no morels at Findlay Market this weekend, so I'm pretending I wanted things to be simpler when in actuality I'm addicted to over-accessorizing my soups. I think it's to make up for how lazy I am when it comes to wearing jewelry.

So peas alone it would be, left whole in a fragrant, herb-tinged broth with bits of tender leek fortified with some dry white wine. If you want a taste of spring, you can find it here.

Logan and I tenderly kneaded the dough and rolled out the ropes that would become little crisped, cheesy, lemon-flecked pillows. 

We chilled them, cut them up, and seared them off in brown butter. Then we did both the gnocchi and the soup base a disservice by putting them together. 

I knew in my heart that it didn't make much sense to put seared gnocchi into a broth, but when I get an idea in my head I'm probably going to follow through on it (see also: 4 years of doing this blog). By the end of the bowl, the gnocchi was getting soggy and overcooked, for which I feel I should be disallowed from making my own pastas for at least 6 months.

Here's what I'll say: The ricotta gnocchi (regardless of what the mean ol' soup did to it) should sound good to you. It is. Get Michael Symon's recipe (it's in Live to Cook) and make it, as is. 

This soup should sound good to you, too (if you like leeks and peas). Make it, but don't bother with the gnocchi here. Instead, cook up some little pasta shells and see how fun it is to catch peas in their crevices. In fact, I think I'll be doing just that come March when I'm allowed to cook things I've made before. And if fresh peas aren't available, this would work just fine with frozen peas as well--just reduce the cooking time once you've added them. You'll want to serve it when your peas are bright green and tender, not starting to lose color. 

Where I should have left it!

I just took another little sip of the broth (what was left is chilling in the fridge (so, yeah, I had it cold (gross I know I'm sorry))) just to confirm my suspicion that the star here is the broth. You can make your own using your favorite method, or start with store-bought vegetable broth -- which is the smart option for a Monday night if you're asking me. My habit is to use Rapunzel vegan bouillon with fine herbs--it's a light broth that is very receptive to adapting to the flavors you want. You won't recognize whatever broth you start with by the end, once you've melted down the leeks, added wine and herbs, and finished it with just a little browned butter (not necessary but delicious). 

BTW if I had to guess from what I get most excited about in writing this blog, by the time I'm 35 the entirety of my diet will consist of broth and peas.

BTW if anyone is still reading this far down (apologies), I'm stalling because I totally have more work to do tonight, but it's midnight and I don't wanna. 

ENOUGH.

Light and Bright Pea and Leek Soup

or Leeky Pea Soup if you're 12 like me

(including pasta shells rather than gnocchi)

serves 4 

GET THIS STUFF

extra virgin olive oil 

3 small leeks, white and light green parts sliced and roughly chopped

1/2 c sauvignon blanc  

4 c vegetable broth

2 c fresh peas 

1 sprig fresh rosemary

1 sprig fresh basil

2 sprigs fresh mint

1 c cooked small pasta shells  

shaved Parmesan 

chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley

browned butter or more olive oil (to drizzle)

DO THIS WITH IT

Heat oil in your soup pot over low heat.

Add leeks with some salt and pepper and stir around, then cover.

Cook for about 15 minutes, stirring occasionally, until leeks are super soft.

Turn heat up to medium and pour in wine--cook until liquid is reduced by half.

Add broth, peas, rosemary, basil and mint and bring to a simmer.

Simmer for about 15 minutes, until peas are tender, then stir in pasta. 

Taste for seasoning. 

To serve, top with shaved Parmesan and chopped parsley, plus a drizzle of browned butter or olive oil.