The Busy Gourmand

Leek Gratin

After soup week I had a few leftover ingredients including some leeks. I do not use leeks very much so I did a bit of research to see what kinds of simple dishes I could make with them. It is amazing what people will do with leeks; braising, in tarts, in casseroles, and au gratin. Will liked the idea of a tart. I did not have the energy to fool around with a crust. I decided to lean toward the gratin idea.

As with most recipes of mine I found two that were promising and combined them into one that, to me, seemed like it would be a bit tastier. The first was a simple gratin, boil the leeks for a few minutes, cut them in half, top them with cheese and put them in the oven. The other was a modified gratin from a “healthy food” web site (I do not visit that kind of site very much) which called for wrapping the leeks in ham, topping them with creme fraiche, and baking in the oven.

My leek gratin called for simmering the leeks for about 5 minutes, wrapping them in some leftover pepperoni (not the pizza pepperoni but the sandwich pepperoni), topping that with some bechamel sauce with a bit of dijon mustard, topping that with a bit of parmigiano reggiano cheese, and baking it in the oven. While the pictures do not seem to make this dish very appetizing I have to say it was a delicious combination of the very subtle leeks and the creamy browned goodness of the cheese and sauce. The pepperoni just added to the complexity adding just enough seasoning to round out all the flavors. I did not add any salt to the process because I knew the pepperoni would add plenty of salt all by itself.

This is one of those dishes that if discovered, some steak house will copy and charge you $10 for it as a side dish. And while I am sure it has never been served at the White House, well, they are famous for other kinds of leaks. It would be better if they were famous for this version.

White Bean Soup with Smoked Sausage

We have been having extraordinary weather the past few weeks. Temperatures in the low 80’s during the day with temperatures dipping into the 50’s at night. I cannot think of a better weather pattern. We have been enjoying eating dinner outdoors, sipping on some wine while the temperature slowly drops. This is what makes autumn my favorite time of the year.

In keeping with the cooler weather and continuing our week of hearty soups, the final soup in the series is a white bean soup with smoked sausage. I developed my first white bean soup when we spent a bunch of money on a Smithfield ham. The kind you have to soak in water for three days just to get all of the brine out of it. I was not too impressed with the ham given the amount of work involved. I did find out that the bone made a good ham broth and the leftover pieces of ham worked well in a variety of soups. The white bean soup was one of the experiments that year.

There are actually two takes on white bean soup. The first, in the genre of the Tuscan soup, keeps the beans whole and adds some greens and other goodies to the broth with the beans. The second variety, which I tend to favor, purees at least a portion of the beans to make a very thick and creamy soup. There is something about a thick, hearty soup that goes with the cooler weather. I like both varieties of soup. But the recipe for white bean soup with smoked sausage is definitely of the creamy variety.

As with any soup recipe the ingredients are more of the moment than cut in stone. In this particular soup I used a bit of jalapeno, cumin, and cilantro. You could go more with a traditional white bean soup and use thyme and rosemary, skipping the jalapeno as well. As for the meat used I generally favor something with a smoky flavor. So whether it is smoked sausage, ham, or smoked turkey the smoky flavor just adds to the complexity of the soup.

Potato and Leek Soup

Every once in awhile a recipe comes along that is so simple it stretches credulity to think that it tastes good. There is one recipe, and the recipe for our next soup, that I have never even attempted because I assumed I would just throw it away before eating it. It is the simple potato and leek soup. The particular recipe is the one found in Mastering the Art of French Cooking by Madames Child, Bertholde, and Beck. I have read this recipe many times. I have even seen Julia Child make it on a couple of PBS cooking shows. I just assumed that when it came to soup our palates had diverged in a big way.

I have eaten many potato and leek soups, usually inundated with cream and butter. I do not have an aversion to either. At some point though a soup becomes a cream and butter soup and less a vegetable soup. To date I found none of the soups especially satisfying.

Potage Before Cooking

Last night I jumped into the abyss, figuring that a week of soups should include at least an attempt at a potato and leek soup. Here is why it seems so implausible. You take equal parts of russet potatoes and leeks, cover them with a bit of water, add a bit of salt and cook them for 40 to 45 minutes. You are then supposed to mash them together. I used an immersion blender although the recipe calls for a food mill. (You may be asking yourself, “Why use a jackhammer when you can use a shovel?” I do not own a food mill. Mon Dieu!) I also dispensed with the optional cream and butter.

The first sip was met with overwhelming skepticism until the velvety soft flavors came together in my mouth. Without all the cream and butter you can taste the light flavors of both the potato and the leeks. It is very subtle, but it is intriguing in its subtlety almost as if it is daring you to enjoy it. This is one of those soups where you would be tempted to have a second bowl. With a bit of bread and a second bowl of soup this would become a very satisfying meal.