Soup

Soups

Potato Soup

2 Tbs olive oil or butter

1 large onion, chopped

1 ½ lbs russet potatoes, scrubbed or pealed

Sea Salt

6 cups chicken broth or water

Fresh ground pepper

Heat oil in a Dutch oven or soup pot, a 5 quart pot works well. Add the onion and stir into the hot oil or butter. Cook until the onion is translucent. Add the potatoes and 1 ½ teaspoons of the sea salt to the pot cook the potatoes stirring often until the potatoes and onions have some color about 5 minutes. Add one cup of liquid and deglaze the pan then add the remainder of your liquid. Bring to a boil and then down to a simmer. Cover partially and cook until the potatoes are tender 15 to 25 minutes.

Let cool and puree in a blender or use an immersion blender to emulsify the onion and potatoes. Taste and season with salt and pepper as needed.

You can add additional flavor to this soup in the following ways.

Parsley: add two big handfuls of chopped parsley during the last few minutes of cooking then puree.

Parsley and tarragon: Add parsley as above and add a smaller handful of chopped tarragon.

Leek: Substitute leek for the onion, use the white part only coarsely chopped. Saute the onion as in the original recipe but do not cook as long as the onion. You only want to soften the leek.

Toppings: As a finishing touch, after pouring the soup into your serving bowl feel free to top the soup in any of the following ways.

Cheese: Grated Parmigiano or Asiago cheese, crumbled blue cheese, cubes of English cheddar.

Herbs or Vegetables: Thinly sliced arugula, chopped and sautéed spinach or mustard greens.

Sunchoke Bisque with Pumpkin Seed Oil

2 TBS safflower oil or sunflower seed oil

1 small onion sliced

3 small yellow fleshed potatoes, scrubbed and cut into chunks

1 Lb Jerusalem artichokes, scrubbed and chopped

1 celery stalk, sliced

2 cloves minced garlic

6 cups vegetable or chicken stock

Sea Salt

2 bay leaves

Milk, half and half or heavy cream for thinning (optional)

Pepper to taste

Heat the oil in a soup pot over high heat. When the oil is hot add potatoes, Jerusalem artichokes and celery. Saute until browned about 10 minutes about a minute before your vegetables are ready add the garlic, taking care not to burn it. Add the stock or water 1 tsp of sea salt and the bay leaves bring to a boil and then down to a simmer. Simmer covered for about 25 minutes

Let cool for a few minutes, remove the bay leaves and puree using a blender or an immersion blender. Return the soup to the pot and warm on a medium low heat. Add milk, half and half or heavy cream to thin and bring to desired consistency.

Ladle into bowls and drizzle with a few drops of the pumpkin seed oil. You may add croutons as an additional garnish.