leek and potato soup for a crisp winter's day

You can't beat a classic. And that's what leek and potato soup is. But you can destroy it, bastardise it, mess it up and/or overthink it, turning it from a classic into a boring option. Keep it simple.

I have some butter left over from a recipe that required it last week. I'm not quite sure how to use the rest of it, so I've decided to use it little by little in simple recipes, like this one:

Leek and potato soup
(serves 3)

2 large potatoes, chopped (about 500 g)
1 rib celery, chopped small
500 g extra trimmed leeks, chopped
25 g butter
1 litre of hot bouillon
100 ml semi-skimmed milk
salt and pepper

3 pieces of back bacon
10 g butter (to serve)

1. Melt 25 g of butter in a pot over medium heat; add the leeks and celery and let them sweat for about 10 minutes. Season with pepper

2. Add the chopped potato and stir well before adding the stock.

3. Bring to an almost-boil; reduce and allow to simmer for 20 minutes. Season to taste.

4. Use a hand blender to puree the soup completely. Add the 100 ml of milk slowly, continuing to blend well.

5. Grill or sear the back bacon, and then chop up. Scatter on top of the soup with 5 g of butter per bowl; season again with pepper and serve.

Serves 2 well for a lunch, with one serving leftover for someone hungry (ahem) or for a snack later in the day.

Calories per serving: 361. A lot for a soup, but worth every one.

It's also easy to bulk this up for hungry souls with a couple of pieces of crusty bread.