This is a whipped, chilled variation on French potato leek soup. I like to serve it with a crusty bread or croutons to get the full effect!
If you haven't cooked with leeks before, you're going to love the flavor you get from them. When shopping for them, look for ones with a lot of white on the bottom and less of the dark green leaves. The dark green part is too tough to cook with, so either throw them out, or save/freeze them to use for making stock later. It's a great aromatic!
Also, leeks are notoriously sandy when you buy them, so don't scrimp on the cleaning. Use a large bowl you can fill with water, so that the leeks have room to move as you swish them around. You'll need to take all the rings of the slices apart so that it's totally cleaned.
Because leeks vary so much in the white vs. green proportion, I gave a weight to use here. I used 3 leeks with a lot of white in them, but if they're greener you might need 6 or 7. Usually they come in bundles of 2 or 3. I paired this with one large russet potato to get about even parts of each. Also use equal parts of broth and cream.
Another note on the finished product - do not bring the soup back to a boil after you add the cream, or the soup will separate and curdle. You can serve it right away warm, or cold the next day, which is traditionally how it's eaten.
You'll need:
- 4 Tbs (half stick) unsalted butter
- 1 lb white and light green part of leeks (trim, then weigh them)
- 1 lb russet potatoes, peeled and sliced
- 2 c chicken or vegetable broth
- 2 c heavy cream
- Fresh chives and crème fraiche for garnishing
Prepare the leeks by trimming the dark green leaves off. Slice the white and light green parts, and put them in a large bowl. Fill the bowl with water and use your hands to rinse the leeks well, separating the slices to everything gets clean. Drain well.
Melt the butter in a large stockpot over medium heat. When the butter is almost all melted, add the cleaned leeks and cook, stirring, until they're soft but not brown, about 3 or 4 minutes. Add the broth and potatoes and bring to a boil over medium heat.
Once it's boiling, cover and reduce heat to low. Simmer 35 minutes, until the leeks are very soft and the potatoes fall apart.
Remove from heat and let cool slightly, about half an hour, if desired.
Pour the soup into a waterproof blender, like a Ninja, and puree on low at least a minute, until very smooth.
Pour the soup into a large food container. Gently stir in the cream. Taste, and add salt and pepper if desired.
Let cool at least overnight. Serve cold, garnished with chives and crème fraiche.
Easy Beginner's Vichyssoise
Ingredients
- 4 Tbs (half stick) unsalted butter
- 1 lb white and light green part of leeks (trim, then weigh them)
- 1 lb russet potatoes, peeled and sliced
- 2 c chicken or vegetable broth
- 2 c heavy cream
- Fresh chives and crème fraiche for garnishing
Instructions
- Prepare the leeks by trimming the dark green leaves off. Slice the white and light green parts, and put them in a large bowl. Fill the bowl with water and use your hands to rinse the leeks well, separating the slices to everything gets clean. Drain well.
- Melt the butter in a large stockpot over medium heat. When the butter is almost all melted, add the cleaned leeks and cook, stirring, until they're soft but not brown, about 3 or 4 minutes. Add the broth and potatoes and bring to a boil over medium heat.
- Once it's boiling, cover and reduce heat to low. Simmer 35 minutes, until the leeks are very soft and the potatoes fall apart.
- Remove from heat and let cool slightly, about half an hour, if desired.
- Pour the soup into a waterproof blender, like a Ninja, and puree on low at least a minute, until very smooth.
- Pour the soup into a large food container. Gently stir in the cream. Taste, and add salt and pepper if desired.
- Let cool at least overnight. Serve cold, garnished with chives and crème fraiche.
Nutrition Facts
Calories
328.12Fat (grams)
27.50Sat. Fat (grams)
17.37Carbs (grams)
18.41Fiber (grams)
1.88Net carbs
16.53Sugar (grams)
3.72Protein (grams)
3.78Sodium (milligrams)
113.84Cholesterol (grams)
82.69