Creamy Potato and Leek Soup

I’ll be the first to admit it…. I used to hate soup. And I mean REALLY hate soup – something about it just made me feel super old, and because I used to eat soup when I was sick as a kid, I just have those memories associated with soup. Nothing really made me crave it.

But as life got busier, the weather got colder (thanks, Chicago), and my cravings for warm food ramped up, I gave it a go again. Slowly, though, and with hesitation. I started with chili recipes, mostly in a slow cooker. My full time job picked up and took up a lot of my time thus draining me from any energy I had to cook after work. So, I turned to my trusty crock pot.

The chili recipes were a turning point, I loved them so much. Everything about them — the comforting feeling, the way the flavors all melded together, the minimal effort, all of it!

And so it went, chili after chili, thus leading to soup… and liking it again! Somehow this journey completely flipped my negative view of soup into a positive one, and thus inspired me to even make my own!! So here we are, I love love love this recipe and I hope you do, too. 🙂 It’s creamy, comforting, filling, and easy AF.

Creamy Potato and Leek Soup

5 from 1 vote

Recipe by Lindsey Goldschmidt

Servings

1

servings

Ingredients

• 5 Russet Potatoes

• 1 Leek Stalk (about 1 cup of leek leaves, chopped from the stalk)

• 3 1/2 cups Low Sodium Vegetable Broth

• 4 Cloves Garlic

• 2 Tbsp Vegan Butter

• 1 Tbsp Olive Oil

• 1/2 tsp salt (plus more to taste)

• Pepper (to taste)

• Parsley, for garnish (optional)

Directions

• Begin by bringing a large pot of water to a boil.
• While water is coming to a boil, peel & chop potatoes. Try to cut potatoes into similar sizes to ensure all cook at the same time.
• Add the potatoes to the boiling water, ensuring that the water fully covers the potatoes.
• Boil for about 15 minutes, until potatoes are fork tender.
• While potatoes are cooking, chop leek (use only the green part of the stalk), and mince 4 cloves of garlic.
• Add olive oil, leeks and garlic to a pan over low heat and let cook for about 5 minutes.
• Remove from heat and set aside.
• Drain cooked potatoes and add fully mash until smooth with either a food processor, hand mixer, or stand mixer. (You may have to mash potatoes in batches based on the size of your food processor or stand mixer — I use a hand mixer here which works perfectly well. :))
• Add in butter, cooked leeks and garlic, and continue to mix until leeks are further broken down & incorporated into the potatoes.
• 10. Add the mashed potatoes mixture back into a the large pot used to boil the potatoes, and add in vegetable broth 1 cup at a time. You can either whisk in the broth, or use a large spoon.
• 11. Once all broth has been mixed in with the potatoes, simmer the soup on low for about 30 minutes, and add salt & pepper to taste.

Enjoy with croutons, fresh bread, parsley, or green onion. Or all four. 🙂

If you made this recipe, I’d love to see it! Let me know in the comments and tag me on IG at @simply_unbeetable 🙂