Get the soup pot out

It was a beautiful, crisp fall day. Inspired by the Green City Market and craving soup as the temperatures get chillier, I made leek and potato soup tonight. This recipe is adapted from Alice Waters' The Art of Simple Food:

Leek and Potato Soup

3 tablespoons unsalted butter

2 pounds leeks

2 thyme sprigs

1 bay leaf

salt to taste

1 pound yellow potatoes, peeled, halved or quartered, and sliced

6 cups of water, chicken broth or vegetable broth

1/3 cup heavy (or light) cream

Trim the root end and the tough upper greens from the leeks.  Cut the trimmed leeks in half lengthwise. Rinse well. Slice leeks.  Melt butter over medium heat in a heavy-bottomed pot.  Add leeks, thyme, bay leaf and salt.  Cook until soft, about 10 minutes.  Add the potatoes and cook for 4 minutes.  Then add water or broth. Bring to a boil and turn down to summer.  Cook until vegetables are tender, about 30-35 minutes. 

Remove the bay leaf and the thyme sprigs and puree the soup (I use an immersion blender for this step). Stir in cream and enjoy with some crusty bread.

We also bought some baking apples today, so I made a small batch of homemade applesauce for our breakfast tomorrow. 

Homemade applesauce

4 medium cooking apples, peeled and quartered

1/2 cup water

2 or 3 tablespoons sugar

scant 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

Heat apples and water to boiling in a 2-quart saucepan over medium heat, stirring occasionally; reduce heat to low.  Simmer uncovered 10 minutes or so, until tender. You may need to pour off some of the water (depending on the consistency you like). Bust out the immersion blender again or a good old-fashioned potato masher, and mash up the apples and mix in the remaining ingredients. Heat to boiling and boil for 1 minute.