Leek & Stilton soup
9
- Prep Time20 mins
- Total Time20 mins
- Makes9 cups
© Royalty-Free/Masterfile
Ingredients
3 small leeks
2 large onions
1/4 cup butter
1 tbsp Dijon mustard
4 cups chicken broth, or bouillon
pinch nutmeg
2 generous pinches white pepper
1/2 tsp dried dill
4 to 6 potatoes
250-mL container half and half cream, about 1 cup (optional)
1/4 cup chopped fresh dill
sprinkling nutmeg, optional
sprinkling crumbled Stilton, or freshly grated parmesan or goat cheese (optional)
Instructions
Clean leeks by first cutting them in half, lengthwise. Cut off all tough parts of green leaves and discard. Separate remaining pale green and white leaves and wash under cold running water to remove any sand or grit. Then, slice leeks into 1/2-inch (1-cm) pieces. Coarsely chop onions.
Melt butter in a large heavy-bottomed saucepan set over medium heat. Stir in leeks and onions. Cook until soft, about 10 minutes. Blend in Dijon until well mixed. Add broth and nutmeg, white pepper and dried dillweed. Cover and bring to a boil. Meanwhile, peel potatoes and cut into small cubes. You should have about 4 cups. Add to broth. Reduce heat to low. Simmer, stirring often, until potatoes are soft, about 30 minutes.
Reserving broth, strain vegetables in a large sieve. Puree vegetables in at least 2 batches in a food processor or blender until smooth, adding some broth if needed. Combine puree and remaining broth in saucepan. Whisk together until blended. Stir in cream, if serving right away, and fresh dill. Heat until piping hot, then taste and add more nutmeg, if you like. If too thick, thin to desired consistency by adding milk, water or chicken broth. To serve, spoon soup into bowls and sprinkle with crumbled Stilton or grated Parmesan cheese.
Nutrition (per serving)
Calories 88, Protein 2.3g, Carbohydrates 11.5g, Fat 3.9g.
This was the signature soup of Fenton's, one of Toronto's most popular restaurants in the late '70s, run by the team behind Acton's. It always came with a crumbling of Stilton cheese, but we've discovered it also works well with Parmesan or chevre.
Make ahead
This soup's flavor benefits from a day's refrigeration and also freezes well. It's best, however, to add cream, if using, just before serving. Soup can be refrigerated for up to 2 days or frozen. To reheat, simply turn frozen soup into a large saucepan containing 1/4 to 1/2 cup water. Heat gently at first over low heat, stirring often, until soup is thawed. Taste and add fresh dill and freshly grated nutmeg, if needed. Cover. Increase heat to medium. Stir often until piping hot. Add cream, then spoon into bowls and sprinkle with crumbled Stilton or grated Parmesan.