Potato Leek Soup
George Kutlenios • April 4, 2024
A Hotel Staple!
This soup has been around for centuries. A classic peasant soup, Julia Child (and so many others) have added their “spin” to this soup and my recipe is adapted from a combination of those methods and our recipe from the Holly Hotel. Potato Leek Soup and Tomato-Basil Soup were staples at the Holly Hotel, appearing often when we made our soups of the day.
One of main differences in this recipe is that it is dairy-free (i.e., no addition of butter or cream) and we often made these soups for guests who avoided dairy. It is, however, not gluten-free but can be easily adapted.
Ingredients
- 2 pounds of fresh leeks, white and light green parts only, washed and thinly sliced.
- 4 medium size russet potatoes, peeled and thin sliced
- 1 small onion or shallot, peeled and thin sliced
- 4 cups of vegetable stock (your own or a premium, low-sodium brand)*
- 1 bay leaf
- 1 sprig of fresh thyme or ¾ teaspoon of dried (or tarragon.) Waiting for Chrissy’s herb garden
- 1/2 teaspoon of Herbs de ‘Provence
- 1 slice of bold white bread (I use sourdough) very lightly toasted and torn into pieces
*While you are preparing your soup, you can make a simple vegetable stock by using the cleaned green leek parts, carrot peelings, onion peelings, celery peelings, etc. or whatever other vegetable scraps you may have been saving in a freezer bag for this purpose. If possible, start this earlier in the day, add a bay leaf, bring to a boil and then simmer for as long as you can before building your soup. ( “vegetable stock”)
Instructions
- Add two tablespoons of olive (or other) oil to your stock pot with the leeks and potatoes. Sweat the vegetables until they begin to get soft, about 4-5 minutes. (If dairy is not a concern, use 50/50 butter and olive oil.
- Slowly ladle just your stock into the hot stock pot with the potatoes and leeks in four batches, stirring constantly, until the soup comes to a rapid boil. Add the bay leaf and thyme, a little salt and pepper. Continue on medium heat until the potatoes become soft, about 10-12 minutes.
- If your soup looks too thin, let it continue to cook until reduced. If it is too thick, add a little more stock. You want a “stew” like consistency.
- Add the torn bread pieces to the pot, reduce heat to low/sim and allow the bread to become completely absorbed, about another 10 minutes. Stir occasionally.
- Remove the bay leaf and thyme sprig.
- Blend the soup in batches in a blender or use a stick, or immersion, blender. I prefer immersion blenders because regular blenders tend to “whip” up too much of the potato starch, thus making it gummy. Return blended soup to stock pot.
- Hold at simmer, test for salt. Garnish and serve.
You can make a nice garnish by thinly slicing your leftover and washed green leek leaves, dried thoroughly, and tossed with a spray of olive oil, a little flour, salt and pepper. Fry them well until they become brown and crisp. They should be matchstick size. Garnish atop of soup. Well-done bacon crumbles are also a nice garnish.
I miss making this for our guests.
Enjoy!
George
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Watch Christmas at the Holly Hotel ~ The movie! On Amazon. The film can be watched without Ads. Free if you have Amazon Prime. If you do not, it may be rented without Ads for 3.99 (you have a 48 hour rental) On Tubi. The film may be watched for free, with Ads. On Youtube. You can watch FOR FREE! We are so greatful that the movie could feature the inside of the Holly Hotel at Christmas. The fire destroyed everything inside, but certainly not the memories. Hope you enjoy this campy movie, and remember some good times within her walls.... hope to see you all in our restaurant very soon! We remain Greatful, Chrissy and George
Updates on Holly Hotel Reconstruction! Deck the Halls with Boughs of Holly... For over 43 years, George and I have warmly honored Christmas at the Holly Hotel. In December, as tradition held, many of you walked through our doors with lovers, family, and friends to meet the fragrance of fresh pine, cinnamon, and delightful aroma from our kitchen. You've watched with swelling hearts the children's choir sing during dining. You have all been greeted with a sincere and heartfelt "Merry Christmas" as you stomped your snow-filled boots in our foyer, only to be instantly transported to Victorian hospitality. We strived to make you feel nostalgic, served, and satiated. It was our distinct pleasure. But not this year, nor last year...and most likely the 2024 Yuletide Season either! Our case continues to work its way through the legal system and, despite our efforts to place this case on a fast track, the court scheduled the trial for August 2024, if we can't resolve the case before then! We continue advancing our position that The Historic Holly Hotel should be entitled to rebuild its west-side wall. Were it not for a fire with an origin that was confirmed to be within the former Arcade building and were it not for the Arcade’s contractor destroying the west-side wall, we would not be in this situation. We will continue trying to move forward to the best of our ability. Many of you have asked how you could help. Your daily emails, antique donations, pictures of Christmases past, prayers, and good wishes fall warmly on our hearts. Thank you for supporting our efforts to reopen. Make Merry this Holiday Season! George and Chrissy
Holly Hotel Reconstruction Halted On June 21, 2022, the Holly Hotel sustained collateral damage from a fire in the adjacent building. Although only one-third of the Hotel was damaged by the fire, 100% of the building sustained considerable smoke and water damage. Within ten days after the fire, Chrissy and I began the restoration of the Hotel- removing one million gallons of water, removing all the drywall, woodwork, and carpeting, and salvaging what we could. This preliminary work took four months (July to October.) The next step was to repair and replace the west end of the Hotel where the majority of the fire damage was located and to seal the building from the outside elements. We engaged an exceptional general contractor in November and began to rebuild the west wall and the roof. When we began this step, we had a survey completed for the Hotel. At this time, we discovered that the Holly Hotel was slightly over its property line in a portion of the building. It had, of course, been that way since its construction in 1891. We contacted the owner of the adjacent Arcade property and she assured us that this would not be a problem. Earlier this year, as the west end was being rebuilt, the owner of the Arcade property sold the now-empty and flattened lot to Jeremiah Roberts. Mr. Roberts claimed in February that we were somehow infringing on his property, and he wanted the west roof eaves and portions of the west wall removed and relocated. Of course, we declined, since we were rebuilding the Hotel in the same footprint prior to the fire. When hearing our denial and with the west wall nearing completion, Mr. Roberts spitefully ordered our construction company to remove any and all cranes and scaffolding from his empty lot, completely denying access to his property. We spent the entirety of the time between February 26 to July 25 attempting to resolve this issue. On July 25, Mr. Roberts agreed to relinquish the claim he previously asserted as to the lot line, only to change his mind on August 10. As you would expect, without construction crews' access to the west-side wall, all construction was forced to stop on February 26 and has been stalled since that time. We could not continue the work inside without having the exterior wall sealed from the elements. Additionally, our contractor and brick masons, having been scheduled and canceled numerous times due to this conflict, have since removed our job from their project boards. With no other options, we were forced to file a lawsuit against Mr. Roberts on August 25. We now wait for adjudication before we can even consider asking our construction companies to reschedule and return. You can read and access the PDF court document by clicking here: Complaint for Declaratory and Injunctive Relief 8_28_2023 Over four decades and for the majority of our adult lives, Chrissy and I have enjoyed nothing more than being of service to you, our guests. We love the Holly Hotel. We always strived for perfection in every corner, with every antique plate and tea cup, with the fresh cut flowers on the tables, with buying the very best produce and meats and so much more. Nothing brought us greater joy than to welcome guests into our dining rooms knowing that we have given them the very best we have. It was never about being a big corporation. It was always personal. We wanted it that way. We will continue doing everything we possibly can to bring the Holly Hotel back and reopen our doors to you. Saying we are disappointed is an understatement. George and Chrissy