What We Ate Wednesday--Leek and Potato Soup

 Hello lovelies! I cannot believe I  have never blogged this recipe. It is my special holiday recipe. We eat it every year on my birthday and Christmas eve. I am not sure why we don't eat it more to be honest. Every time I eat it, it just feels like a warm soupy hug. 

It is easy to make and just feels special. It became our go-to holiday soup from the first year we were married because it reminded us of England because we ate it at the Café in the Crypt at Saint Martin in the Fields church on the day we got engaged in 1990. Maybe it was also the leeks. Which now also remind us of Wales as leeks are part of the national emblem of Cymru. We used the soup as a sort of talisman to help us get back to the UK and here we are, so it must have worked. 

In the US it was much harder to find leeks (this was nearly 30 years ago, times may have changed) but we had to go out to Albertsons to buy them as I recall.  

This recipe makes 4 big bowls of soup. Also, I don't normally cook with vegan butter, but I like the leeks cooked in a TB of melted vegan butter, but it is not a necessity. 

Leek and Potato Soup

1 TB vegan butter (or a splash of water)

2 large or 3 smaller leeks (the white parts only...not the thick green leafy bits at the top)

garlic 

500g potatoes, diced

3.5 cups vegetable stock

splash of tamari or soy sauce

1 tsp yeast extract like marmite

1 tsp mixed herbs 

1/2 cup unsweetened plant based milk

black pepper to taste 

1. Melt your butter or heat your splash of water in a big pot. Cut the root end off your leek and slice lengthwise. Check for dirt. leeks love to hide dirt in the crevices. Then slice your leek into lots of pieces (they will be a sort of C shape) and throw them in with melted butter. It will look like a lot of leeks but they will cook down. When they have softened and reduced a bit throw in some garlic. 

2. Add in your diced  potatoes, tamari or soy sauce and yeast extract and stir to coat. Add your vegetable stock and mixed herbs and bring to the boil. Reduce heat and simmer with the lid on for 25 minutes. 

3. Remove from heat and add your milk then using an immersion blender puree until as smooth as you like--we like it smooth with some whole chunks in there, but you could make it completely smooth. 

4. Check to see if it is warm enough (does it need a little more heating since it has been off the hob for a few minutes?) and top with black pepper. 

This is delicious and simple to make. It tastes like your dreams coming true (if your dream was to someday emigrate to the UK.)