Mushroom Leek Soup

This week I just got a hankering for some nice light soup. Many of the Leek soups that I have enjoyed have included heavy cream and a much greater potato content. I enjoyed them but I wanted something less heavy. I have included heavy cream in the ingredients should you feel so inclined. I think this soup is great without it but it will also be good with it. So worked up this one after watching someone cooking another dish involving leeks on TV. I hope you like it as much as we did.

Ingredients

2 tablespoons butter
1 large leak, cleaned and washed throughly and rough chopped (or 2 – 3 smaller ones).
1 lb of nice fresh mushrooms cleared rough chopped
1 cup nice white wine (I like Chenin Blanc)
4 cups of chicken broth
1 cup of Idaho instant potatoes
1 cup of Heavy Cream* (optional)
Salt and Pepper to taste

 

Directions

  1. I prepare my leeks by first cutting off the ends. Then I begin trimming off the ends of the dark green leaves. Many cooks cut the dark green out all together but I like a little bit of their color and coarseness in my soup. At the end your leak should look something like a spear tip. Then split the leak down the middle and then split the halves again. This should allow you to wash all the sand and dirt from your leek completely before chopping it into 1/2 inch pieces. Sand in your soup is a bad thing!
  2. Wash your mushrooms right before you put them in the pot. Course chop the mushrooms.
  3. In a medium to large sauce pan, add butter, leeks and mushrooms on medium heat.
  4. Stir the leeks and mushrooms in the butter for a couple of minutes till they soften, then add the wine.
  5. Stir the leeks and mushrooms mixture for a few more moments, add the chicken broth and raise the heat to bring the pot to a soft simmer.
  6. Stir in the instant potatoes, (and heavy cream if desired) cover and lower heat.
  7. Allow soup to cook for about 15 minutes, taste and salt and pepper, as needed.
  8. Serve with a nice hard crust bread.