Ingredients

• Olive Oil
• Butter
• Leek
• Potato
• Better than Bouillon
• Daikon
• Celery
• Carrot
• S and P
• filtered water (from Britta)

Notes

I use a Lodge cast iron dutch oven that is a good size but had a cheap metal soup pot before and it did a fine job. It was so much lighter than this cast iron piece that I have now! I am also pretty sure they were the same size.

I do not make vegetable stock but throw in a ton of veggies and add vegetable bouillon to enhance the broth. My favorite is Better Than Bouillon-Vegetable. I add a tbsp, stir and taste. Simmering five minutes between tasting and adding more gives me a good idea of the flavor developing. Also this means that I could make this soup with less vegetables depending on what I had on hand.

Daikon is definitely optional since most folks would not have this Japanese radish hanging around. I like its clear, peppery flavored and have been adding it to my potato leek soup for so long I don’t remember how I decided to start. I really enjoy it!

I really enjoy pureed soup and one of my favorite kitchen purchases was my immersion blender. I do not always blend my soups, it always depends. Sometimes I blend half which is popular with my family and favorable when a soup has grains or noodles in it. Right now Emma is picky about eating potatoes but loves them pureed in her soup. This potato leek soup was fantastic pureed and finished with cream—that what Emma ate.

Process

I add a glug of olive oil and simmer chopped leeks. After a few minutes I add the potatoes, diced and with a tbsp of butter. I just started doing this with the potatoes and butter and it smells heavenly but easily omitted to make the recipe vegan. After a few minutes I cover with water and start adding the other vegetables. First carrot, then celery and daikon. Cover everything with water and then some and bring to a boil. This is usually when I shake some salt over the pot. Simmer on low and begin tasting the broth as it develops. I slowly add the bouillon, simmer more and taste.

If you need to serve the soup quickly then you can as soon as the potatoes and carrots are cooked through. I try to simmer this soup for at least 30 minutes to bring out as much flavor as I can before serving it to my starving family. Puree towards the end. You will have a good idea of how much more water to add. Add salt and pepper to taste of course use any seasonings that you think may be a nice addition. I have put in fresh rosemary to simmer with the vegetables and it was great!