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Tuesday, March 5, 2013

Recipe: Leek, Onion and Potato Soup - Vegetarian (Delia Smith)

I wanted to try a soup recipe from Delia Smith's Complete Cookery Course book, and I finally settled for the "Leek, Onion and Potato Soup" seeing that this is one of Delia's personal favourite. According to Delia, leeks have an affinity with butter (she has several other recipes which pairs butter and leeks). The amount of butter she used in this recipe is 50g, however it can be reduced to half for those who are more health-conscious.

For a better flavoured vegetable soup, Delia suggests sweating them as the heat draws out the natural juices and the vegetables become softened before the liquid is added. To sweat the vegetables, simply coat the vegetables with melted butter thoroughly and then cook over the gentlest heat possible with the lid on, stirring from time to time - this process is called "sweating".

Leek, Onion and Potato Soup with Parmesan Popovers


For this recipe, there is the option of using a light chicken stock (see Step 1 here on how to make chicken stock) or water. In later editions (on her website), she added vegetable stock bouillon to the list. I went for the vegetable stock option, since I have been getting quite a lot of requests lately for vegetarian recipes and I wanted to see if the soup was flavorful enough using a vegetable stock.

Once the soup is ready, place it in a blender and puree until smooth. Another option is to roughly mash the ingredients if you prefer to have some "chunks" in your soup but I would suggest pureeing it for a smoother, creamier finish. Add a swirl of cream and fresh parsley before serving. If you like, you can also chill it; the chilled version of this soup is called Vichyssoise.

The soup was flavorful and light. We enjoyed the soup with some homemade Parmesan popovers (recipe here) as well as some German chorizo and Spanish Pata Negra (Jamón ibérico) ham that Mum brought back from Germany. A real satisfying spread for lunch!



Thanks to The Unc for getting these for us

And btw, Delia Smith will be receiving a BAFTA Special Award for her outstanding contribution to television cookery. Do also check out her new Online Cookery School which will teach you lots of cooking basics (Lesson 1 is baking a classic sponge cake).


Leek, Onion and Potato Soup (Vegetarian)
Recipe from Delia Smith's Complete Cookery Course
Preparation time: 15 minutes
Cooking time: 40-45 minutes
Serves 5-6

Ingredients
4 large leeks
2 medium potatoes, peeled and diced
1 medium onion, chopped small
50g butter
850ml vegetable stock or water (or chicken stock for non-vegetarian option)
275ml milk
Salt and freshly ground black pepper

To serve
1 tablespoon double cream
1 1/2 tbsp snipped fresh chives or chopped fresh parsley


1. Begin by trimming the leeks, discarding the tough outer layer. Now split them in half lengthways and slice them quite finely, then wash them thoroughly in two or three changes of water. Drain well.



2. In a large, thick-based saucepan over medium low heat, gently melt the butter, then add the leeks, onions and potatoes, stirring them all round with a wooden spoon so they get a nice coating of butter. Season with salt and pepper, then cover and let the vegetables sweat over a very low heat for about 15 minutes.


The leeks should look slightly translucent


3. After that, add the stock and milk, bring to simmering point, cover and let the soup simmer very gently over low heat for a further 20 minutes or until the vegetables are soft – if you have the heat too high the milk in it may cause it to boil over.

4. Put the whole lot into a blender and blend to a purée. Return the soup to the saucepan and reheat gently, tasting to check the seasoning. Add a swirl of cream  before serving and sprinkle with freshly snipped chives or parsley.


Here are some other Delia Smith recipes I have tried previously: pavlova with fresh strawberries, fresh lemon curd, lemon curd butterfly cakes, American brownies and orange sauce.

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I am submitting this to the "Cook Like Delia Smith" bloghop which I am co-hosting with Zoe of Bake for Happy Kids and Mich of Piece of Cake. To join, simply cook or bake any recipe from any Delia Smith websites or cookbooks and blog hop with us for the whole month of March 2013.

Your post must be a current post i.e. posted in March 2013 - please do not link older posts.Please mention Cook like a Star in your post and link back to Zoe of Bake for Happy Kids, Mich of Piece of Cake and Baby Sumo of Eat your heart out.

You can get the HTML code here: get the InLinkz code (Click on the link, copy and paste the HTML code into your blog post where you want the blog hop list to appear. Make sure you are in HTML mode when you paste in the code)

Happy cooking! Do check out the other bloggers recipe below:




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29 comments:

  1. Learned something new about cooking today! Never knew sweating was related to food ha ha

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    1. Hehehe got the same response from many of my FB and IG friends :P

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  2. the perfect soup to be a starter to steak meal, i think :D

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  3. I love leeks but have not cooked it this way. Usually eat the Chinese stir fried version with roasted pork or prawns. The soups sounds good, so will KIV this recipe :)

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    1. Yeah usually we also just stir fry it, but thought we'd try somethin different. This type of soup is very popular in UK.

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  4. Hi Yen! I'd cooked this before and it was good. Like you, I prefer the puree version.

    Keep thee recipes coming!

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    1. Thanks Alvin! Still have many Delia recipes to share :) Do join us if u have the time to try one of her recipes.

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  5. Yen, you are a truly Delia Smith's fan! This is a soup to have in winter!

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    1. Hehe although there is no winter in KL, we still like to have hot soup everyday. Mostly Chinese though cos they're easier to make.

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  6. Hi Yen,
    Like Phong Hong i love leeks even my kids too..
    Your soup looks creamy and delish...I would like the puree version too!
    Thanks for sharing about Delia's online cookery school, will check it out soon!!

    mui

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    1. Hi mui mui, my kids like this soup too. Hope u can try out some Delia Smith recipes too.

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  7. i've been recently getting into vegetarian too and I love it! the flavours can still pop without meat.. depends on who is cooking it really. I bet your soup is tasty - i love leeks!

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    1. Yeah a good vegetarian stock can make soup taste really yummeh!

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  8. yum!! made this soup a few times before too but I added bacon... lol... gotta have my bacon. One of my favorite soup....

    drooling over yr Parmesan popovers and that awesome looking chorizo & pata negra!

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    1. Hehe I agree, bacon crumble would be very nice if making for non vegetarians! The Pata Negra was so good... hoping to have some more when my bro comes back again.

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  9. Wow this looks such a comforting soup!! Love the colour and the technique!!

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    1. Thanks! It's good to learn all the basics and apply it to other dishes too.

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  10. I love leeks and onion. This is such a hearty soup that will makes me forget about meat all together...at least for a day. ;) I can't wait to try it. Sounds perfect for a chilly night.

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    1. Hehe I think I could go meatless for a few days but not forever, would miss my steaks too much!

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  11. Yummy comforting soup! I love leek & now it's the season too! Will try this recipe end of the week & I'm sure I like it. :)

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    1. It's a good thing we can get leeks almost all year round here now, since they grow well in Cameron Highlands.

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  12. Hi Yen,

    This soup sounds creamy (without the cream) and delicious. Glad that I'm learning so much about Delia Smith from you.

    Zoe

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    1. Thanks Zoe! We're all learning a lot from each other everyday, part of why I love blogging so much. Plus the friendships too :D

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  13. This leek and onion soup looks yummy ! With some crispy bacon topping , perhaps ? :D

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    1. Haha! Tis supposed to be vegetarian.. but for you, I will add some crispy bacon :P

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  14. I make the similar recipe that was given to me by a private catering chef from NY. It was one of my fav soup recipe ever!

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  15. I have been looking for a leek and potato soup after I had lost one that I had for many years. Only in the recipe that I had it called also for tarragon. It is worth trying. It gives it a distinct delicate flavor.

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