Leek and Potato Soup

For those of you who don't know me that well I'll let you into a not so secret, secret...I'm a terrible cook! Which I have to say is pretty frustrating when you're a real foodie like me.  It's not for the want of trying either.  I really do put the effort in but somehow the end product doesn't end up tasting or looking quite so, er desirable.

I really don't get it.  I always follow the recipe step by step. Take for example the chocolate cake I made in August.  I followed that recipe WORD FOR WORD and this was the end result! Shocking I know!

In my defence I would just like to say that a) the recipe didn't explain how much mixture to put in the tin and b) how the heck do you get the icing to stick to the cake without destroying half of it in the process!? On a positive note the cake actually tasted really nice and the five people who tried it lived to see another day.

And then there was the time I made pavlova. Note I said pavlova and not pizza as the below photo would lead you to believe.

Seriously , I have more chance of becoming a quantum physicist than I do a master chef.  However, just occasionally miracles do happen when I'm in the kitchen and it seems only fair to share my culinary delights with those of you also lacking skills in the kitchen department.  I know you're out there, show your faces!

As winter's approaching there's nothing a nicer than a warm hearty soup.  My favourite has to be Leek and Potato soup and it's got to be the easiest soup to make, in the world!!  Obviously I haven't put this to the test, if there are easier soups to make please feel free to comment below.

Leek and potato soup literally has 3 - 4 ingredients, 5 if you include seasoning,  Is that technically an ingredient? Who knows, lets not ponder! When I make soup I always think it's nice to make a big batch so we can get a few lunches from it, you could even freeze some of it.  So bear in mind these quantities are very generous!

8 leeks

7 small / medium potatoes

1 garlic clove

Vegetable stock

Salt and pepper

Cut off the stringy white end of the leek, peel a couple of layers off, then cut off the dark green part and throw away.  It feels like you've cut your leek in half and thrown it away, which seems like a waste but as far as I'm aware there's nothing else you do with that end of the leek!  Again feel free to enlighten me, as we all know I'm no expert!  

Slice the leeks around 2cm thick. Peel and chop the potatoes into quarters or smaller.  Remember, the smaller they are the quicker they'll soften.  Try to keep them roughly the same size so they cook through at the same time.  Add some oil to a big saucepan, throw in the the leeks and potatoes, add a crushed garlic clove and some salt and pepper, put the lid on the pot and leave to sweat on a low heat. I always fret that the veg will stick to the pan, so I keep going back to give them a good stir.  

After about 15 / 20 minutes I add some boiling water with a stock cube so that the veg really begins to boil down.  Then just leave this simmering on a low heat until the leeks and potatoes have completely softened.  Once you're happy the veg has completely cooked through, take off the heat and use a handheld blender to liquidise the soup.  Add water depending on how thick or thin you like your soup.

So in a nutshell, peel and chop your veg, chuck in a pan to sweat, add some stock, boil down, liquidise and that's it! Easy as pie, except that's a ridiculous comment because making pastry is not easy to do, at least not for me anyway! They should change it to 'easy as eating pie'. That I can do!

So, are you a terrible cook?  Do recipes baffle you?  Have you got an easy recipe you'd like to share if so I'd love to hear from you!