A creamy and hearty soup made with simple and inexpensive ingredients; warming, inviting, and delicious, Potato and Leek Soup is the perfect cold-weather recipe that comes together in about an hour. Everyone loves this soup!
I love cooking with leeks. I think there are two reasons why I love cooking with leeks so much. Now, before you judge me or think I’m crazy, give me a minute to explain why. First, leeks are inexpensive and super flavourful! They have a mild, onion-like taste. In their raw state, leeks are crunchy and firm, but when they are cooked, espeically in a soup, they break down and release all of that onion-y flavour into the broth.
The second reason I like to cook with leeks is where you judging me might come into play. Okay, here goes: they are just so satisfying to chop. Does that make me weird? Do you know what I’m talking about though? When you trim off the top, hard, inedible portion and slice the leek lengthwise to wash out the dirt which might have become trapped in the many layers, those circular layers, and those different shades of greens, really appeal to me.
I find the washing part of a leek very therapeutic. (I’m going to get hate mail, I just know it!) Next, the slicing action is like a dance – really it is! I’ve been practicing my knife skills for years. Every chance I get, I like to practice and hone my fast chopping method. I call it my method, because I’m pretty sure it’s not a chef-approved method, but it works for me! So, what I’m trying to say is, when you chop across the leek and all of those shades of green bounce on your cutting board, it’s therapeutic. I promise!
Any way, Dear Reader, if you’re still with me, I digress. It’s time to put my weirdness aside and focus on the recipe. As I mentioned before, there is no cream in this recipe, but as you can see from the photographs, the soup has a very thick and creamy consistency. There is one very easy way to achieve this result, and if you don’t already have one in your cooking arsenal, I highly encourage you to treat yourself or beg your closest loved one for a gift. It’s the hand-held immersion blender. It makes everything creamy – with or without cream!
As you can see from the ingredient list below, Potato and Leek Soup is extremely simple. In most cases, you’ll already have the majority of the ingredients in your fridge or pantry already. With the exception of the potatoes and the leeks, which most of us don’t keep on hand unless we need them, that’s pretty much the only things you’ll have to buy. You’ll also note that I added an onion to the soup even though the leeks should have provided enough onion flavour. I did so because this recipe makes a large pot of soup and I wanted there to be enough onion flavour to keep up with the eight cups of vegetable stock.
Potato and Leek Soup might just be one of my favourites so far. I say so far, because I tend to make a lot of different soups starting in December through to April. We all love soup and in most cases, I can make it on the weekend and serve it during the week or freeze it for use at a later time. Also, in our home, soup gives you an excuse to eat bread – it’s true!
Just look at the photographs, there’s bread in those pictures. Bread and soup so hand-in-hand, and I highly recommend you eat your Potato and Leek Soup with a good slice or two of crusty bread. I used a baguette and drizzled it with a little olive oil. This recipe is dinner done right – you’ll love this soup!
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Potato and Leek Soup
Ingredients
- 3 tablespoons butter
- 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
- 3 large leek stalks, washed well and thinly sliced
- 1 large onion, roughly chopped
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 5 pounds white potatoes, peeled and diced
- 8 cups vegetable stock
- 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
- 1/4 teaspoon dried sage
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
- 1 tablespoon Fresh thyme leaves for garnish, optional
Instructions
- In a large heavy-bottomed soup pot, add the butter, vegetable oil, onions, and leeks. Over medium heat, saute the vegetables for 15 minutes, stirring often. Do not allow the leeks or onions to turn brown!
- Add the garlic and stir into the sauteed vegetables.
- Next, add the vegetable stock, thyme, sage, salt, black pepper, and potatoes. Stir to combine.
- Reduce heat to medium-low and place a lid on the pot. Allow the soup to simmer for 45 minutes. Stir every 15 minutes.
- Once the potatoes are fork tender, use a hand-held immersion blender to puree the soup. If you don't have an immersion blender, you can carefully add a few cups of soup at a time to a counter-top blender and puree the soup.
- Taste for seasoning and add more salt and pepper if desired.
- Serve with crusty bread and garnish with fresh thyme leaves.
Nutrition
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