This month, our Executive Chef shows you how to create a delicious meal from a few simple ingredients – potato and leek. This pair is rich and flavourful, light and healthy making it a nourishing and filling meal guaranteed to warm you up this Winter.
Ingredients
- 1 x whole leek (washed, cut in half and sliced)
- 2 x large brown onions (peeled and sliced)
- 4 cloves of garlic (crushed)
- 3 vegetable stock cubes
- ½ teaspoon of dried thyme
- 7 large brushed potato’s (peeled and cut into even chunky pieces)
- 250ml of thickened cream
- 800ml of boiling water
- Salt and pepper to taste
- 30ml vegetable oil
- 400g Bacon (optional)
Method
- Heat oil in a thick-based Pot. Add onions, leek, garlic and thyme. Cook gently, continuing to stir until soft but not browned.
- Add potato, then pour in the boiling water. The water needs to be just covering the ingredients. Depending on the size of your potatoes, you can adjust accordingly.
- Place a lid on the pot and simmer until the potato is soft when tested with a knife.
- Add the cream and continue to simmer for 10min.
- Cut the bacon into small cubes. Heat a frying pan with no oil. Add the bacon and cook until crispy. Once finished strain off the remaining oil (I like to put it on a plate with paper towel to soak up that unwanted fat)
- Take the pot off the stove and rest on a heat proof mat. Using a stick blender start blending the ingredients on low working up to the highest level. (If you don’t have a stick blender, don’t worry. For a low power solution, you can use a potato masher to achieve the same creaminess and you’ll have great control over how smooth you want your soup)
- Once smooth, season the soup to your liking. Chefs secret – don’t be afraid to add some salt – potato’s need seasoning. Put the soup into your desired bowl, drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle on the bacon. This Dish goes perfectly with some toasted or crusty fresh bread.
If you have time to make the bread we have a lovely recipe for no-knead artisan bread that you can make the day before for a delicious addition to this wonderful winter warmer.