It’s Fall. Where I am, anyway. Happy Spring to all our Antipodean friends, and everyone living south of the equator, or close enough to it that Fall doesn’t ever really happen where you are.
This is the kind of thing that happens up here in Fall.
Fall means lots of things to me, but I’ve just realized – on re-reading that post from one year ago – things have changed in the last 12 months. I blame Bailor, mostly. I no longer drink Salted Caramel Hot Chocolate. Parsnips and swedes (rutabagas) no longer dot the landscape of my kitchen. And this year, at least, there will be no pilgrimage to England. Fall still means soup – just minus the baguette, except on the odd occasion that I have a moment of *inSANEity. I’ll be working on *SANE “bread” as soon as I can get to it – my *SANE to-do list is longer than the line outside the Post Office on the last guaranteed mailing day before Christmas. Yikes! Did I just type Christmas? Where has this year gone??
Let’s not think about the Holidays. Let’s think about soup. It’s far less expensive, after all, and doesn’t require wrapping. The other day, upon posting this fantastically orange soup, my little blogette nearly exploded. Who knew Carrot Soup would – or could – get people quite so twitterpated? I had carrot soup love pouring all over my inbox. Along with all that love came copious calls for, “More soup! More soup!”
I am here to serve. More soup it is.
If you’ve been coming here for any length of time, you’ll probably have put money on which vegetable my next soup would be based around. And you’d have been right. You knew it would have to be the humble leek - favorite veggie in the universe.
I feel a little silly sharing this, but soups scared me for years. Then one day, after I got my first mortgage and moved into my condo (flat) with a kitchen so small you could touch two opposite walls at the same time, I had a wild hare and made Leek and Potato Soup. I winged it. Threw some sautéed leeks in some chicken stock with butter, and then added a big old pile of mashed potatoes. It was the bomb, and I instantly became soup obsessed. Nothing has ever floated my boat like that first bowlful. I can still taste it now.
When I thought about what soup I wanted to make for you next, it had to be Leek and Potato. Ah. Except we don’t eat potatoes. Enter Mr. Cauliflower. Plus a splash of white wine and some herbs you’re totally not expecting. Cindy licked her bowl clean, and that’s all that needs to be said about it really. Oh and that I took it to the office and ate it cold for lunch and it made my toes curl.
If you still haven’t succumbed to leeks, start here. I think you’ll love it.
- 4 cups chicken (or clear vegetable) stock
- ¾ cup white cooking wine
- 2 lbs leeks (not trimmed – use it all!), sliced into small pieces
- 1 lb 12oz (1 medium) cauliflower, cut into small pieces
- 2 tsps dried spearmint
- 1 tsp dried rosemary
- 1 tsp salt
- ¼ cup butter
- Heat chicken stock and white cooking wine in a large stockpot.
- Add leeks and cauliflower, spearmint, rosemary and salt to the stockpot.
- Cover and cook until cauliflower is just tender.
- Working in batches, blend the vegetables on high until they are completely smooth. To one batch add the butter and blend.
- When all vegetables have been blended, add all the batches back into the stockpot and stir well.
- Gently reheat if necessary.
*SANE™, inSANE, SANEity – terms used in Jonathan Bailor’s book, The Smarter Science of Slim.
by carrie
Colleen - Thank you for making it THIS easy to figure out what I’m having for dinner tonight… ;)
carrie - I love this soup Colleen – hope you enjoy it!
Suzanne - Decadent! I love the podcast and thought I’d try some leeks. This is fabulous and tastes so rich and sinful. It will become a winter favorite for me. Thanks
carrie - This makes me so happy, Suzanne!!!
Lorrie Heist - Almost picked up a leek and put it in the grocery basket today. Funny that you should post this today. Now, I’m wishing I would have purchased it.
carrie - You walked past a leek, Lorrie??!! You’re a stronger woman than I! ;-)
Andrea - If you were to oven roast the leeks and cauliflower first, it would get this soup’s flavor to a whole new level. I just did a soup last night with many types of mushrooms and an onion – oven roasted – so delicious!
carrie - That sounds awesome, Andrea!
Spiced Cauliflower Soup » Carrie Brown | Marmalade and Mileposts - [...] that masquerades as mashed potatoes. Cauliflower swathed in cheese sauce. Cauliflower that makes soup all kinds of creamy. It seems to me that cauliflower is getting more versatile and exciting by the minute around [...]
The Monday Memo #3 » Carrie Brown | Marmalade and Mileposts - [...] Leek and Cauliflower Soup – my favorite vegetable turned into a fabulous winter warmer. [...]
ELA - Thanks for the many amazing recipes….what non-dairy sub will work to replace butter here? Thanks-
carrie - Hi ELA! The butter is really for flavor and creaminess in this recipe, so feel free to just leave it out. Hope that helps!