potato leek soup

With the craziness of a fabulous Christmas over, we're ready for a season of rest; and so we've been hunkering down for a nice and long cozy winter. I've found myself wondering if winter is not too unlike the Sabbath of seasons. Spring brings energy with its brighter days, new life to flora & fauna and the work of planting. Summer is for traveling, celebrating, filling our schedules to the brim and staying up much too late. We harvest, bustle about and feast in the Fall. And then comes Winter - with its dark days, quiet snow and frozen ground. Perhaps I can grow to appreciate the rest and waiting. And perhaps, Lord willing, I will use this quiet season for spiritual and imaginative refreshment.

So yes, this southern girl still finds cold weather disgusting, but she's realized that a fresh perspective helps a bit.

But on to my point :)

I have the perfect winter soup recipe. In fact, the conclusions above were reached while I prepared this fabulous Potato Leek Soup (found on a friend's pinterest board, where everything she pins looks so tempting).Simple ingredients, minimal fussing and incredibly filling - that's my kind of meal. The biggest hassle is cleaning and prepping the leeks, but I've discovered a technique that makes everything easier. The leeks I find out here are always so filthy with mud and sand. But look at this easy (and beautiful, I think) way of cleaning them:

Maybe everyone else has always cleaned their leeks this way, and I'm just late to the party....either way, I'm super glad to finally know better.

As mentioned, this soup is so simple (and affordable!). The leeks are sauteed with butter and salt; potatoes, water, thyme, chili pepper and bay leaves are added; simmer for 20 minutes or so; stir/blend/emulsify to your texture preference. And that's it!

I'd recommend adding more potatoes to increase the soup's thickness. Also, blending the soup gave it a wonderful velvety texture. We sliced up a crusty loaf of bread and paired it with a bit of sherry. It was a wonderful, simple and cozy dinner. 

Perfect for a calm, restful and reflective winter night.

B