Potato Leek Soup

By eveweb

Ingredients

• 2 dried bay leaves
• 6 sprigs fresh rosemary, or 2 teaspoons crushed dried rosemary
• 4 sprigs fresh flat-leaf parsley
• 1 teaspoon whole black peppercorns
• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 4 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 4 stalks celery, cut into 1/4-inch dice
• 6 leeks, white parts only, washed well, thinly sliced
• 4 shallots, diced
• 6 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 1/2 pounds Yukon gold potatoes, peeled and cut into 1-inch pieces
• 8 cups Homemade Chicken Stock, or canned low-sodium chicken broth, skimmed of fat
• 1 cup milk
• 1/2 cup heavy cream
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Details

Servings 6
Adapted from marthastewart.com

Preparation

Step 1

Make a bouquet garni: First wrap bay leaves, rosemary, parsley, and peppercorns in a piece of cheesecloth. Then tie with a piece of kitchen twine, and set aside.

Heat olive oil and butter in a medium stockpot. Add celery, leeks, shallots, and garlic; cook on medium-low heat until very soft, about 45 minutes, stirring only occasionally. Do not brown. Add potatoes, stock, and reserved bouquet garni. Bring mixture to a boil, and then reduce to a gentle simmer. Cook until potatoes are very tender, about 40 minutes. Remove bouquet garni, and discard.

Working in batches, pass half of the soup through a food mill, fitted with a medium disk, into a large saucepan. Add remaining chunky soup. Place the saucepan on medium-low heat to warm soup. Slowly stir in milk and cream, and season with salt and pepper. Serve hot.