Cream of Potato, Leek & Bacon

The farmers market in my town opened this weekend, and I'm thrilled about it!  I typically buy far more produce than two people need for a week, stock up on freshly cut flowers, and let Browny say hello to all of his neighborhood pals (like this little guy):

Sorry, getting side-tracked by cute animals is just part of the deal when you visit this blog.

So, back at that farmer's market on Saturday.  I picked up a bunch of leeks and knew that the rainy forecast was perfect for a cream of potato and leek soup this week.

Only a few ingredients are required for this lovely soup:

• 6 potatoes
• 3 leeks
• 2-3 quarts vegetable broth
• 1/2 cup butter
• 1 quart cream
• 3 strips of bacon? "bacon"! Fake bacon, if you'd like to get technical.
• 3 tablespoons of cornstarch
• 3 teaspoons chopped parsley
• salt and pepper
• (If you're curious, I used this recipe for inspiration.)

Starting with 2-3 quarts of water, I boiled the vegetable bouillon (which is far cheaper than buying pre-made stock).  While the bouillon was boiling in the large pot, I used a separate pot to saute 3 leeks in the butter.  Then I added 3 pieces of Morning Star bacon.  (A few drops of liquid smoke would also be a great vegetarian alternative to real bacon.)  

After the leeks were thoroughly cooked, I added them to the boiling potatoes and vegetable stock, and let it simmer for about 10 minutes.  Then I added the quart of heavy cream, and 3 tablespoons of cornstarch (just to thicken the broth).  Afterwards, I let it simmer for about 45 minutes.  

I went out to pick some parsley from our little herb garden, only to find this little guy: (see, I told you I can't resist animal photos)

Needless to say, the parsley got an extra good wash before it was chopped and put into the soup.  I saved an extra piece, just to get all Martha Stewart on you.  Voila!

Mmmmmmmmmmm