Cascadian Farm Organic Goodness

I have a bit of a potato leek soup obsession. My own brand happens to create its own broth and then get blended together into smooth, creamy perfection. Then I went to San Francisco this fall where I was served a bowl of potato leek soup just lightly drizzled with truffle oil. No pulsing blender. No cream. Again, perfection.

Whether it's the leeks or the potatoes that call to me in this soup, it's one that I find myself going back to again and again. This heartier version (read: unblended) incorporates a healthy dose of spinach for an extra nutritional boost, which is always needed and welcome in the midst of the winter.

Potato Leek and Spinach Soup

3 leeks

1/4 cup olive oil

2 cloves garlic, diced

1 1/2 pounds Yukon Gold potatoes

2 quarts of water

1/2 cup white wine

bunch of fresh thyme

2 bay leaves

3 cups baby spinach leaves

1 teaspoon white pepper

salt to taste

Truffle oil, optional

Cut off the root end and the very top of the dark green end of the leeks. Slice the white and light green portion of the leeks thinly. The dark green portion can be left longer for easier removal from the stock. In a large stockpot, heat the olive oil over medium-high heat. Add in leeks and sauté for 10 minutes until soft. Add garlic and stir once. Pour in water and the reserved green tops from the leeks. Bring to a boil and then reduce heat to simmer for 30 minutes.

Wash and dice the potatoes, leaving skins in place. Remove the long dark green tops from the pot. Add in the potatoes, white wine, bay leaves and thyme. Simmer for 45 minutes until potatoes are tender and starting to fall apart at the edges. Stir in spinach 5 minutes prior to serving and stir to wilt. Serve warm and drizzled with truffle oil if desired.

Makes 6 servings.

For me winter wouldn't be complete without a few good soups...or perhaps more than a few.  There is no better way to warm up on a cold winter day than with a cup of soup in hand, as it warms you straight down to your gut.  If not the main course, soups provide the perfect starter to ease you in to a hearty meal as well.

If you remember, I was just waxing poetic on the virtues of overwinter leeks, but then I left you waiting for an actual soup recipe to use them in and only provided you with a way to turn the parts of the leek you wouldn't use into a broth.  I intend to rectify that today.  A simple leek and onion bisque will make use of all the vegetables we didn't use when we made our vegetable broth.

This soup would make a fantastic starter to a grass-fed braised pot roast dinner, but it makes a meal of itself when paired with a loaf of homemade bread.  It's a winter offering of warmth in a cup.

Leeks are a fantastic vegetable in the winter time because they can be left in the ground until you're ready to eat them. They're a near essential in winter soups. Paired with a broth, a few other vegetables and a bit of cream to fill you up, leeks are sure to become a staple on your winter comfort food list.

What I don't like about leeks and particularly leeks in soups is that most recipes are only looking for the white and light green portion of the leek, discarding the rest.  In fact, most things that require peeling and pitting and seeding and juicing seem wasteful to me.  I like to repurpose.  The good news is that you can salvage the dark green portions along with your other vegetable waste and turn it into a flavorful vegetable broth that will act as the base for those same soups.

Start with the dark green portion of your leek.  Then chop both ends off of a large sweet onion, peel and save both the ends and the papery skin.  Chop half of it.  Remove the leafy tops and the bottom root ball of the celery.  Crush 8 to 10 cloves of garlic.

After heating 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a large stockpot, add all of the vegetable scraps aside from the onion ends and skin and the celery root ball.  We can add those later.  Sauté the roughly chopped vegetables for 10 minutes until they sweat and soften up.