What a weird week it has been in Italy. News of the Coronavirus striking Northern Italy sent everyone into a mass panic with people stocking up on supplies like it was the end of the world. The last 2 days of Carnevale were cancelled in Venice, school closures extended to the end of the week and sporting/cultural events also cancelled. For me personally, it’s been business as usual. I got myself to the supermarket and bought what I needed on a daily basis like normal – it was crazy to see the empty shelves on Monday morning and it was also interesting to see what people go for in the event of an emergency – pasta, passata, flour, sugar, tissues, anti-bac, water, Nutella biscuits and tuna. I couldn’t help but laugh and was only grateful for the fact that I had already stocked up on flour in preparation for pancake day and baking last week.
Now, back to today’s recipe – I love a soup and whilst the days are getting longer, it seems that where I thought we were entering Spring, it seems that Winter just isn’t quite ready to let go! So here is another Winter warmer and it’s super easy to put together – Leek, Potato and Pancetta soup. All you need is a saucepan and either a blender or a stick blender, oh and a wooden spoon. Simply fry off the pancetta, keep some aside if you want to add it as additional croutons on top, chunk in the rest of the ingredients and let it do it’s thing. Then it’s simply a matter of blending it all together and you get yourself a creamy soup without any cream – this is something I love as it just makes it a little healthier whilst still giving you that creamy consistency.
Of course, if you want to make this for your veggie/vegan friends, you can omit the pancetta, but I would recommend adding a little more salt as the pancetta really adds some additional flavour to the soup. Also, when rinsing the leek, I recommend trimming it length ways first so you can really rinse in between the individual layers which is where you will find some hidden dirt.
4
servings5
minutes45
minutes50
minutesIngredients
2 Leeks, trimmed & rinsed
2 Medium Potatoes, peeled
150 g Diced Pancetta
1 L Vegetable Stock
1 Tbsp Olive Oil
Salt
Pepper
Directions
- In a medium saucepan, add olive oil and heat on medium. Add pancetta and fry for 2-3 minutes. Meanwhile, chop the leeks and potatoes into 2 inch chunks.
- Add the leeks and potatoes to the saucepan, stir and pour in the vegetable stock. Season with salt and pepper. Bring to a boil then simmer for 40 minutes.
- Carefully pour the contents into a blender (or use a stick blender) and blend until smooth. Check the seasoning and adjust accordingly.
- Serve immediately with croutons – I also sprinkled on Trader Joe’s “Everything but the Bagel” seasoning, alternatively, leave to cool completely and either keep in the fridge until ready to serve or freeze.
Notes
- Keep this dish completely plant based by removing the pancetta! It’s delicious both ways!