Seasonal Recipe
Potato Soup with Roasted Garlic
Adapted from Vegetarian Cooking For Everyone by Deborah Madison (Broadway, 1997)
Serves 4 to 6
Potato soup could hardly be easier. Use whatever sort of potatoes you like, as long as they're fresh and flavorful. Starchy baking potatoes tend to fall apart, lending a creamy body to the soup, while fingerlings and other waxy varieties hold their shape. You can mix and match, too, to enrich the body while still having substantial pieces in the finished soup.
Peeling is optional, too, depending on your preference, and you can always remove them at the end by passing everything through a food mill. (This works well if you don't feel like peeling your garlic, either.)
Ingredients:
- 2 tbsp. butter or olive oil
- 2 onions, finely diced
- 2 or 3 bay leaves
- 2 lb. potatoes, peeled (optional) and chopped
- 2 heads roasted garlic
- 2 quarts plus 1 cup water or stock
- 2 tbsp. fresh parsley, chopped
- Salt and black pepper, to taste
- In a heavy pot over medium heat, melt the butter. When the foam subsides, add the onions and bay leaves, stirring occasionally until they soften. Add the potatoes and raise the heat. Cook about 10 minutes, stirring frequently, and add 1 cup water. Scrape the bottom to loosen up any flavorful brown bits.
- Add the remaining water and the garlic, and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer, partly covered, until the potatoes are soft, about 20 to 30 minutes. Remove the bay leaves and check the seasoning. If you like, pass the soup through a food mill, and serve immediately, garnished with the fresh parsley.
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