Day 290.
Wow, the year is flying by. I meant to make potato leek soup eons ago, and never got around to it. My mom made some on the stove top over the weekend and brought over a container, and it egged me on to recreate it in the crockpot.
It was terribly easy. Especially because Adam was home for the day (I was on call for jury duty. I didn't have to go in, phew.) and did all of the chopping while I answered email.
I didn't add any heavy cream. You can, but I was pleased with the flavor and creaminess without a drop of cream.
The Ingredients.
--3 large leeks, cleaned and diced (you only use the white part)
--1 medium yellow onion, chopped
--1 pound brown potatoes (weigh them---you'll only need 2 or 3)
--5 cups broth (chicken or vegetable)
--1/2 tsp thyme
--1/4 tsp black pepper
--2 cloves chopped garlic
--1 cup heavy cream (optional)
The Directions.
Have your husband do all the work.
He used the 6.5 quart eLume---peel the potatoes and chop everything up and toss it in with the broth and the spices.
If you are going to use heavy cream, you don't add that until cooking is complete.
Cover and cook on low for 7-9 hours, or on high for about 4.
When the potatoes and onion are fully cooked and soft, use an immersible blender to soupify.
If you don't have an immersible blender, blend in small batches CAREFULLY in your traditional blender.
Stir in heavy cream, if desired.
The Verdict.
This is a light, creamy soup that is perfect for a starter course, or for sipping out of a mug on the couch. I'm going to have it for lunch this week.
Adam packed some to take for lunch at work. The kids didn't try it, and thought it smelled gross. It does have an earthy smell while it cooks. I opened a window and turned on a fan.
thank you, mom!
Sounds yummie!! I love my Crock it was the only thing that kept us fed back when I worked and was raising a family.
October 16, 2008 at 7:17 AM
I have made this soup several times, but with and without stock or broth, and this is one soup where I actually prefer it without.
I think it may have to do with being sick once, and it was all I could keep down. Normally you would think that chicken stock would be a great thing to have while sick, but I just could not keep it down. Anyway, that soup kept me alive that way, so that's how I prefer it!
Oh, maybe a little butter instead of cream, too.
October 16, 2008 at 7:29 AM
I love soup in the crock-pot.
In Minnesota, it's a way of life from about October to May. : )
October 16, 2008 at 8:46 AM
any thoughts about adding some ham or bacon? How would I do that? Sounds delicious...
October 16, 2008 at 8:47 AM
Does it have to be blended? Do you think it would taste okay left chunky over rice?
I'm new to crockpotting and don't know much!
October 16, 2008 at 9:06 AM
Hi Billy, You can most certainly add cubed ham or crumbled bacon after the soup has been blended (I think it might be weird to blend them in, unless that's what you're going for).
Riannon, You can serve this over rice if you'd like, but the broth will be quite thin if the potatoes aren't blended in.
xox
steph
October 16, 2008 at 9:13 AM
A friend of mine was just telling me about this the other day & I found you! Yay! I would love to do a feature on you sometime if you don't mind. :)
October 16, 2008 at 9:31 AM
October 16, 2008 at 9:54 AM
Yay! Potato Leek soup. I don't have thyme though. haha time or thyme. But I will make TIME for this soup today. And I have a bunch of apples in the cold crock pot waiting to be chopped and turned on. The kids loved this the other day. Thanks again for your greatness!
October 16, 2008 at 10:01 AM
I just found you and I need to tell you that I love you! Your blog is fantastic, I have spent the last hour combing through your recipes trying to decide what to throw in my crock pot for tonight! I am so excited to have made the treck across blog land to your little piece of crock pot heaven.
Thanks so much!
October 16, 2008 at 10:42 AM
This looks yummy.
I just stumbled across your blog and am really enjoying it. What do you do with all the leftovers? Even if you eat only leftovers for lunches, that is still a lot of food! Is your freezer packed and ready for the recession? ;)
October 16, 2008 at 11:21 AM
would there be any value to cooking ham or bacon with it? I feel like that might add to the flavor. Sorry for all the questions...
Also, I don't have an immersible blender or a regular one. Think I could do it with a potato masher and a whisk??
October 16, 2008 at 11:35 AM
I've got to tell you that I so thoroughly enjoy reading your kids' opinions of all your meals. Sometimes their tastes are so off-base from us adults that what we think is really great is a total grossfest for them!!
October 16, 2008 at 11:46 AM
Interesting that you said "have your husband do all the work" because my dh is planning to make potato leek soup this weekend! I'll have him try this recipe; thanks! :)
October 16, 2008 at 11:57 AM
My friend just told me about your blog and I just checked it out for the first time! I can't wait to start from the beginning and see/try some of your recipes!
October 16, 2008 at 12:18 PM
Great I will try this. What a great Blog.
October 16, 2008 at 3:12 PM
I haven't had potato leek soup since I went to England almost 10 years ago, I love it! Thanks!
October 16, 2008 at 4:18 PM
I'm so glad a friend told me about your blog! Our daughter needs a GF diet, which makes trying new recipes hard sometimes. But you have so many here, I'm encouraged to start trying some!
October 16, 2008 at 7:16 PM
I made this soup today and it is perfect for a Saturday lunch: it took about 10 minutes to prepare in the morning, and then it was done by 12:30. It's hearty and tasty and went down well with freshly made bread (gluten free for our family).
Stephanie, thank you -- my crock pots have not sat idle on the shelf since I found your blog! And having the gluten free aspect is a real bonus!
October 18, 2008 at 12:44 PM
Ha! Thanks for reminding me that I have jury duty tomorrow!!!
October 19, 2008 at 7:56 AM
Yummy! We had this last night. I blended it but left it a little chunky and added the cream and some crumbled cooked bacon. We had it with a nice loaf of French bread and lots of fresh black pepper.
I had made this the day before and put it in the 'fridge, rewarmed it yesterday and then added the cream and bacon when we were ready to eat.
October 19, 2008 at 9:37 AM
Thanks for this recipe, I can't wait to try it. I've grown leeks in my garden for a few years, but silly me, never have used them! I will now!
October 20, 2008 at 8:30 PM
I love this spoup. I will try making it on the crockpot. i love my crockpot. But I think this time I will not blend it. Last time I made it my husband was excited to see me cooking it. But didnt like it once I blended it. He actually likes to see what he is eating.
Thanks for the tip on Crockpoting it. This will be the first time I do a soup in the crockpot.
January 29, 2009 at 12:05 PM
I made this today and it's delicious! Instead of cream, I used fat-free evaporated milk. It's a great substitution for cream. I sprinkled a little cheddar cheese on top and mmmmm, it's great.
February 2, 2009 at 5:36 PM
I have to say, I just saw your recipe for this, and it's missing a key ingredient - kielbasa! My husband is German and his mother gave us her recipe for potato-leek soup, and it's almost exactly the same, except with kielbasa! It adds that extra oomph... You cut the kielbasa up in to small chunks and saute it with the leeks until the leeks are all kielbasa-y and dump it into the crock pot... YUMMMMM. Being the weirdo that I am, I add a little sour cream on top when I'm ready to eat it. Double yum! Anyway, just a thought. :O)
March 25, 2009 at 10:42 AM
Made this tonight, kids didn't like it (of course), but I did. I found it was MUCH better with the cream. And the texture was way better after blending. I tried to just mash it with something so I wouldn't have to get something else dirty, but it definitely was better after blending.
September 20, 2010 at 6:46 PM
I actually made it the day before I needed it, transfered to a pot, stored it in refrig, regheated the next day and then added cream. I used light cream, not heavy. Very nice.
November 23, 2010 at 9:16 AM
Cooking this in the morning!
October 15, 2011 at 6:57 PM
I make this recipe ALL THE TIME but we add in carrots, spinach and provolone cheese (in addition to the heavy cream) it makes it a million times tastier!
September 12, 2012 at 8:46 PM
I just found this blog... I don't consider myself much of a cook, and I LOVE all things crock pot! I have four kids so casseroles and crock pots make me happy. I can't wait to try this recipe. I think I might try to serve it with a thin sour cream on the side to garnish and without the heavy cream.
Thanks again!
October 18, 2012 at 11:29 AM
All my kids love potato leek soup. I've never made it in the crock pot, but we are definitely going to try it tomorrow! I don't put cream in mine either. I just blend it and it has a nice texture. I have seen some recipes that use evaporated milk instead of cream. that should cut down on the fat.
November 6, 2012 at 5:36 PM
I love this soup and actually freeze it on a regular basis... cook it, cool it, and freeze it with no dairy in it. Then I thaw it, heat it, and stir in 2 Tbsp sour cream or good alternative (I always have fat free plain greek yogurt around). Sprinkle the top with chopped chives. Delicious!
November 19, 2015 at 6:23 AM