Creamed leeks

[jeral Profile]

As leeks are an autumnal food, this is a very informative link about them, which also gives ideas for double cream alternatives if people can't eat or don't have any in - incl a vegan alternative, yay:
https://www.greedygourmet.com/recipes-f ... med-leeks/

MariaK put creamed leeks as the follow-on domino in t'other thread but it was skipped over by the subsequent poster. I couldn't remember at the time what I loved with them (being non meat); it's sauteéd spud slices and mushroom burger.

However, the link above gives 10 other meal ideas, plus c.2/3rds down, and very usefully, "Herbs and Spices to pair with Leeks"

[Alexandria Profile]

Basque & Spanish Wild Leeks ..

I love leeks, however, I prefer a Vichyssoise (I use a tiny potato for thickening, no dairy) and / or simply sautéed in Evoo, Italian or Catalan and a bit sea salt, a tiny drizzle of fresh lemon and a clove of garlic or two .. And a sprinkle of fresh minced herbs from my terrace ..


I also employ leeks or shallots instead of onion ( could be harsh ) with delicate fish / seafood ..

[Renee Profile]

Thank you for the link jeral.

I made a lovely leek, onion and potato soup today, following a recipe which involved cooking everything very lightly, using a cartouche, which covered the vegetables whilst they were softening. I added some home made light chicken stock and a small amount of reduced white wine. It was the best ever leek soup that I've made, full of flavour and doesn't need the addition of any cream.

[jeral Profile]

Renée, thanks, I was lucky, to come across that link randomly.

Would adding the white wine have made the difference for your best-ever soup? I always forget about it, my being a red wine drinker, so wondering if it might be that "missing something" which can be a bugbear with some veggie soups.

[Lusciouslush Profile]

Really fancy a leek & potato soup now!

[Renee Profile]

Well, it's the weather for soup now, isn't it Lush! Grey and raining here.

The soup tasted good before the addition of the white wine, which I had forgotten to add, so reduced and added it at the end.

Small bottles of white wine are available at a reasonable price, about £1.50, from Asda or Aldi, so worth the cost if you're making a big batch of soup to freeze down. In M&S they are about £3.

Here's the recipe that I used:

https://www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/173 ... otato-soup

[Alexandria Profile]

Renée,

Thank you for posting the link for the leek & potato soup ..

Shall check it out ..

I too use white wine in soups.

I too, do not use cream to thicken soups ..

Have a lovely day ..

Flying to Madrid Capital on Monday and we shall spend a few days in the city, for retail therapy and then home sweet home to Barcelona ..

[Stokey Sue Profile]

Cream doesn’t thicken soup - but some soups are always finished with cream and would seem lacking without it

I never add onion or shallot to leek and potato soup, as I prefer the taste of the leek alone. The trouble is that it’s best made with the white only and many leeks on sale seem to have very little white. At home we used to earth up growing leeks to get maximum white

To make a lighter and surprisingly different soup you can replace some or all of the potato with courgette; and this works fine with the light green part of the leek. I make what I call green soup - roughly equal parts of leek, courgette and spinach or watercress. Yum - hot or cold, with or without cream

[Amyw Profile]

I love leeks . I’ve made a posh cheese on toast before with a Hugh FW recipe where you cook the leeks down in butter , add cream and cheese then pile it on toast and top with more cheese before grilling . Nice winter supper .

I also like leeks in a risotto with cheese and mushrooms

[smitch Profile]

I love leek risotto too, I usually add a bit of blue cheese to mine. That cheese on toast with leeks sounds fab, will give it a try next time I have some nice sourdough bread.

[Joanbunting Profile]

I am from the land of the giant leeks which are grown compettetively. I talk of the NE England, not Wales!!

Wind me up and I have several dozen recipes for leeks, creamed and otherwise. Both my dad and greandfather were champion leek grower and our first home when we were married was largely furnished with his prizes.

If you are interested I can supply recioes for;
Leek pudding (steamed suet crust)
Ham and leek pasty
Leek and bacon scones
Leek and tattie soup - posh when chilled with cream
Leek, potato cheese and bacon bake.

Actually one of my favouirte accompaniment for fish is fondant leeks which require little else than seasoning and plenty of butter

[Alexandria Profile]

Joan,

The fish and leek fondant sound exquisite ..

I have some French butter as well as French Provençal Evoo ..

Surely, I would enjoy your recipe ! It shall be a true pleasure to prepare it surely ..

Have a lovely day ..

[mark111757 Profile]

AmyW

Could this be it??

https://www.rivercottage.net/recipes/le ... se-toastie

[Renee Profile]

Sue, I bought trimmed leeks which were almost all white, so very suitable for the recipe.

[Amyw Profile]

Yes that's it Mark. I sometimes add some mustard or garlic , and often forget the thyme

[karadekoolaid Profile]

Leek and bacon quiche is delish.
I occasionally cream my leeks with a mixture of milk and cream cheese. I suppose it´s about the same as heavy cream, but a little bit sweeter.

[MariaK Profile]

Jeral,

A belated thank you ; haven't been around for a while - too much going on.

That is a good site, though my creamed leeks aren't that posh! Soften in clarified butter if I have it or a drible of neutral oil +butter and add a bit of single cream at the end. No cream then milk & a little cornflour. Herbs : usually dill.
Mash with a generous helping of finely sliced leeks cooked in butter, but retaining a bit of crunch is also rather good.

[karadekoolaid Profile]

Just had a thought, Jeral, since you´ve got a vegan at home.
Somewhere I´ve got a recipe for baked leeks with wine, and a kind of oatmeal crust on top... I´ve tried it, and although it sounds a bit odd, it´s actually very tasty.
If you´re interested, I´ll dig it out.

[jeral Profile]

Karadekoolaid, thank you for the oatmeal topped idea. Can I use ground porridge oats?

I'd be glad to receive the recipe when convenient - no rush as I'm a touch snowed under just now. Ta.

[Luca Profile]

I love creamed leeks with pasta (and bacon on occasion in a pasta bake - Delia's).

Also great with baked eggs and sourdough toast.