Potato and Leek Soup


There is not much at all to this soup. In fact, even my photographs are a little stupidly simple. But I have always been a fan of potato and leek soup. And I like stupidly simple from time to time. Usually on a weeknight.

Oil. Leeks. Potatoes. Liquid. Salt. Dairy. Parsley. Do you really even need a recipe? 


Given that this is a food blog, I am going to provide you one. But, seriously, change every amount to fit your palate, your taste, your proclivities on a random Tuesday night. Throw this recipe to the wind. Sure, use it as a guide if you want, but you should play and dabble and change this one for yourself.

But let me tell you a little secret about this recipe. Even though I don't fully believe in it, I have a soft spot for the recipe and for its cookbook. But I am about to donate this cookbook to the little free library in my neighborhood. 


I loved this cookbook in the 90s, and I have waxed nostalgic about it previously. But it's time. It's time to let this cookbook go. 

Sadly, I have used it only twice in the past six years, and both times it was because I had given myself the gimmick of cooking from a specific page (page 210 and page 215). I find myself reaching toward other, more recent cookbooks. 

In part because in the 90s, I was a new cook, and I would have needed the recipe to guide me. In part because my palate has changed. In part because I think there are a plethora of really great vegetarian cookbooks out there.


But I do want to bid a proper farewell to this standby cookbook. So, I give you a recipe that I loved in the 90s and I have strayed away from in the 10s.

But this book has served me well.





Potato and Leek Soup

Adapted from Almost Vegetarian

Yield:
4 Servings 

Ingredients:
1 Tbsp olive oil
2 large leeks, cut in half, cleaned, and sliced into thin crescents
4 large boiling potatoes, peeled and quartered
2 cups chicken or vegetable broth
2 cups water
1 cup plain yogurt (nonfat, lowfat, or full-fat)
Salt and pepper
1/2 cup fresh parsley, chopped

Instructions:
1. In a large saucepan, heat the olive oil. Add the leeks and saute until the leeks begin to soften, but do not brown, about 5 minutes.

2. Add the potatoes, broth, and water. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat, cover, and turn the heat down to medium-low. 

3. Simmer until the potatoes are tender enough to cut with a spoon, about 40 minutes.

4. In a blender or food processor, puree the soup in the cooking water and broth, doing this in batches and/or adding more broth and water if necessary. Then return to the saucepan.

5. Add the yogurt, and heat slowly over low heat, uncovered, until just warmed through. Season with salt and pepper, and stir in the parsley.

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