So I got to play in the kitchen a little today. For breakfast, made my favorite smoothie (frozen berries, banana, orange juice and yogurt thrown into the blender - delicious), and for lunch I made Bleu Cheese and Leek soup. Trader Joe's now offers a bag of sliced leeks in the frozen vegetable section. I've been using the frozen artichokes and frozen onions and frozen peppers for awhile - love to saute a few artichokes or peppers and throw into the middle of an omelet. But I hadn't seen the leeks before so I snagged them. The soup took about 15 minutes to make AND i got to use up leftovers.
2 tablespoons Butter
1 cup chopped leeks
3 cups water - added 2 veggie bouillon cubes and minced garlic cloves
2 cups chopped cauliflower (we had leftover broccoli and cauliflower medley from dinner)
sprinkle of dried tarragon leaves
1 or 2 ounces Blue Cheese, crumbled
pepper to taste
Instructions:
Melt butter in pot over medium-low heat. Add leeks; cook until tender. Add cauliflower, tarragon, garlic and stock; simmer until cauliflower is tender, 12-15 minutes.
Scoop the cooked veggies out with a slotted spoon and place in a blender. Add the crumbles of blue cheese to the blender and blend. Once it is pureed, pour it back in with the broth and stir it up.Simmer it a little more, then ladle bowls. Grind a little black pepper over the top if desired.Eat with some buttered french bread and an apple.
While saute-ing the leeks, Jackie called to discuss christmas presents, I got lost in the moment and over-browned the butter and the leeks, causing the soup to turn into an unappetizing mushroom color. But it was delicious. The bleu cheese added a little twang over the oniony taste of the leeks. Perfect for a cold winter day.
