American Twist on Julia Child's Potato Leek Soup

Potato Leek Soup with an American twist

Potato Leek Soup has been around in some form or another for hundreds of years, but it was made  famous by Julia Child, an American woman who wrote the book on Mastering The Art of French Cooking.  She had several different televised cooking shows in the 1970s and 1980s.  Her version, a deliciously creamy soup dubbed Potage Parmentier, typically served either hot or cold, is famous the world over.

My Americanized version features the heartier flavors of smoked bacon and rich sour cream in addition to the fresh herbs and vegetable base made famous in her soup but is equally delicious served hot or cold.  I also included fresh lime juice to brighten the flavor.  It pairs perfectly with the velvety broth.  So, what's your favorite soup on rainy nights?  Please respond in the comments!  Click below for the recipe.

Potato Leek Soup with an American twist

Potato Leek Soup with an American Twist

Ingredients

3 pieces of bacon cooked and crumbled.  (reserve bacon grease)
3 large leeks, cleaned
1 clove garlic, minced
5 medium Russet Potatoes, peeled, rinsed, and cubed into 1/2" cubes
1 Tablespoon fresh Thyme
1 32 oz box of vegetable stock
1/2 cup heavy cream
Juice of 1 lime
Sour Cream
1 1/2 teaspoon Kosher Salt
Lots of freshly ground fresh pepper

Directions

1. Prepare the leeks by cleaning, slicing, rinsing and drying.  See instructions for cleaning leeks, below.
2. In a large Dutch Oven, cook the bacon until crisp.  Remove the bacon and crumble it into a small bowl when cool enough to handle.  Set aside.
3. Into the oil left behind from the bacon, add the clean, dried leeks sautee until they begin to get a little brown.
4. Add garlic and fresh Thyme leaves and cook until fragrant, around 2 minutes.
5. Add Vegetable stock and use a spoon to scrape up any bits of leeks stuck on the bottom of the pan
6. Add vegetable stock and simmer over medium high for about 20 minutes or until potatoes are soft.
7. Remove pot from heat.  Using an immersion blender, blend the soup until smooth.  If you don't have an immersion blender, you can use a regular blender, just work in smaller batches, and be careful that the lid is in place as you do not want hot soup splashing out of the blender and into your face!
8. Stir in heavy cream, salt, and freshly ground pepper to taste.  
9. Finally, add the juice of a lime.  Add this slowly, starting with a tablespoon or so.  You can always add more, but you can't take it out if it's too much for your personal taste.  In our home, a whole lime does the trick.  
10. Ladle some soup into a bowl, sprinkle with fresh parsley and crumbled bacon bits.  Add a dollop of sour cream to the center and serve with some hearty wheat bread.  

How to clean leeks

Haven't used leeks before?  No need to be intimidated.  If you haven't eaten them before,  they taste a bit like scallions, except they're much larger.  It's important to clean them well before using them because they are full of soil and/or grit deep inside the layers due to the way they're grown.  Here are the steps I use:

1. Slice off the tip of the root end, and (less than) 1/4 end of the white base
2. Remove the coarser outer leaves.  Often, these will look a bit ragged anyway.  
3. Slice the entire stalk down the middle
4. Rinse each stalk under running water being sure to get between all the pieces 
5. Slice each half of the stalk into little pieces.  They will look a bit like the letter C because you've sliced them in half.
6. Add the sliced leeks into a bowl of cold water and move around with your hands.  Any lingering soil/grit will sink to the bottom.  
7. Discard the water, and repeat number 6 until you're sure no more grit remains.
8. Drain into a colander then into a bowl lined with paper towels.  Since you're getting ready to sautee them in oil, we want them to be pretty dry to prevent spattering of the oil.