I learned an important lesson this week: don’t mention your culinary school blog while at school because heckling will ensue.  I also realized that I cannot stay up late on a school night.  I become practically useless in the kitchen.

More importantly, I learned about food!  Among other things we made puff pastry, grilled fish, coq au vin, melting hot chocolate cake, decadent mashed potatoes… and started learning about food costing, which may be a challenge for me.  I’m kind of embarrassed to admit that I haven’t touched math in at least 10 years.  It’s a shame because I used to be pretty good at it.  Now, my head spins while trying to figure out how to put the numbers together.  I know what I’ll be studying this weekend.

And it may be an extra long weekend!  We’re supposedly in for a blizzard.  I stopped by the grocery store to pick up ingredients for stock and I’ve never seen so much madness.

During these chilly winter months, I can’t get enough soup. It’s warm, comforting, and simple to make.  I thought that in honor of this week’s blizzard I’d offer up a yummy version of potato leek soup.  In Mastering the Art of French Cooking, Julia Child states “Leek and potato soup smells good, tastes good, and is simplicity itself to make.”  I love Julia and I like her recipe, but I really really like this recipe.  Again, I highly recommend using homemade stock.  It’s easy to make and the results are dramatically different.  Real chicken stock contains collagen (gelatin) from the bird, which gives a richness and thickening power to recipes that cannot be replicated by store-bought products.

LE POTAGE JULIENNE DARBLAY

Ingredients:

  • Butter
  • 2 Leeks, white part only
  • Chicken Stock (vegetable stock is ok if you want a vegetarian soup)
  • 1/2 – 3/4 of an Idaho potato, peeled and sliced
  • Chives
  • Bouquet Garni (Parsley, Thyme, Bay Leaf)
  • 1 Garlic clove
  • Cream
  • Optional garnish: julienned carrots, celery and leeks  (I recommend adding them for texture)

Method:

  1. Julienne the carrots, celery and leeks if using for garnish.
  2. Sweat the julienned vegetables until tender. Add salt.
  3. In a separate pot, sweat 2 diced leeks in some butter.  Add salt!
  4. Add stock to cover the leeks by an inch or two.
  5. Add potato slices and simmer.  Add some more stock if necessary to cover them, but don’t add too much or the soup will be thin.
  6. Once the potatoes are thoroughly cooked, ladle into a blender.
  7. Add 1 clove of garlic, chives, loose bouquet garni.
  8. Puree very well and then strain the soup through a fine mesh strainer.  Return to the stove.
  9. Add salt, pepper, cream and butter.
  10. Garnish with carrots, celery, leeks and chopped chives.

Stay warm!