Or Cold Leek and Potato Soup, from Mastering the Art of French Cooking by Julia Child. R. made this for our family's Christmas dinner and claims she didn't follow the instructions well and of course served it hot rather than cold but it was so delicious that my non-soup-enthusiast husband demanded that we blog and save this recipe. So here goes:
Ingredients:
3 C. peeled, sliced potatoes
3 C. sliced white of leek
1 1/2 quarts of white stock, chicken stock, or canned chicken broth
Salt to taste
1/2 to 1 C. whipping cream
Salt and white pepper
2 to 3 T. minced chives
Directions:
1. Simmer the vegetables in stock or broth instead of water as described in the master recipe. Puree the soup either in the electric blender, or through a food mill and then through a fine sieve.
2. Stir in the cream. Season to taste, oversalting very slightly as salt loses savor in a cold dish. Chill.
3. Serve in chilled soup cups and decorate with minced chives.
Serves 6-8.
Other Variations from Mrs. Child:
"Using the master recipe for leek and potato soup [above], a cup or two of one or a combination of the following vegetables may be added as indicated. Proportionas are not important here, and you can use your imagination to the full. Many of the delicious soups you eat in French homes and little restaurants are made just this way, with a leek-and-potato base to which left-over vegetables or sauces and a few fresh items are added. You can also experiment on your own combinations for cold soups, by stirring a cup or more of heavy cream into the cooked soup, chilling it, then sprinkling on fresh herbs just before serving. You may find you have invented a marvelous concoction which you can keep as a secret of the house."
To be simmered or cooked in a pressure cooker with the potatoes and leeks or onions at the start:
-- Sliced or diced carrots or turnips
-- Peeled, seeded, and chopped tomatoes
-- Half-cooked dried beans, peas, or lentils including their cooking liquid
To be simmered for 10-15 minutes with the soup after it has been pureed:
-- Fresh or frozen diced cauliflower, cucumbers, or broccoli, lima beans, peas, string beans, okra, or zucchini
-- Shredded lettuce, spinach, sorrel, or cabbage
To be heated in the soup just before serving:
-- Diced, cooked leftovers of any of the above vegetables
-- Tomatoes, peeled, seeded, juiced and diced
