Potato, leek, (and bacon) soup
With the cooler weather of the late fall seeping and the disappearance of the leaves, it seems to be the right time to introduce a few comfort food staples to my column. This past week was my second time making potato and leek soup – this time, I decided to add peppercorn bacon for a little extra deliciousness, but it is just as good without.
Making soups can seem intimidating, but the truth is, although the prep-work may take a while, making soups are a simple way to have meals for days! This potato and leek soup is particularly simple to make, as it requires minimal ingredients and approximately an hour of your time.
Begin by peeling four or five potatoes, and cut them into cubes. Next, chop six leeks (remember to cut off the bottoms, and the leafy green tops), and rinse them well. Get out a large pot, and pour a couple tablespoons of olive oil in. Add in the chopped potatoes and leeks, and turn the stove on to medium heat. Stir often so that nothing sticks to the bottom of the pot. Allow the potato and leek mixture to cook for approximately eight to 10 minutes, or until they begin to soften and get some colour.
Next, get out another pot and bring six to eight cups of vegetable stock to a boil. Once it reaches the boiling point, add it to the pot that is cooking the potatoes and the leaks. Cover, and reduce the heat to allow the ingredients to simmer together for 40 minutes, while stirring occasionally.
While the ingredients are simmering together and softening, if you want to add bacon, now is the time to get out a frying pan and cook a few slices. I cooked eight slices of bacon total. I chopped up and added four slices to the mixture before blending; I chopped up and added in the other four after the blending process took place, so that there were pieces of bacon in the soup.
After 40 minutes simmering, the potatoes and leeks should be soft. It is now the time to add in the bacon, and remove the mixture from heat, readying the mixture to be blended. Blend until smooth. I used a hand-held blender, which I find easiest when blending soups that require blending. If you are using a regular blender, spoon the mixture into the blender in small batches, and continue until all of the soup is smooth.
Then, put the soup back on the stove, on a low heat, and mix in one-half to a full cup of heavy cream, and season with salt and pepper. Top the soup with freshly chopped chives, bacon crumble, and cheddar cheese if you like, and be ready to indulge in a smooth, warm, and comforting soup that will allow you to forget about the cold weather outside.
Shopping list:
- 4 or 5 medium potatoes
- 6 leeks
- vegetable broth
- salt and pepper
- chives
- heavy cream
- bacon