Potato mushroom leek soup

I know when fall is ending and winter is around the corner when I start thinking about soup. I like soup, but only in the winter do I think about it. All week, I keep thinking of recipes I could put together for a good soup. I was planning to do this one yesterday, but realized I had not broth when I got home, so here it is today.

Shrooms and soup... perfect for a cold night

Soup is something that a lot of people grab from the can or tetra-pack. Once you have home made soup I don't know how you can go back to the canned stuff. It's just not that good. plus it is full of sodium and in a lot instances, animal products. Before I went vegan, I don't think I ever made a soup from scratch. It seemed like a lot of work and a lot of time. This just simply is not true. You can make an amazing soup in 30 minutes... and if you can stand it, 60 minutes will really get those flavours blending. 


Soup is a perfect one pot meal. When you make it yourself, you control the ingredients and the salt and fat levels. So load up your soup pot with whatever you are feeling. Tonight, I am feeling a craving for potato mushrooms and leeks. 


Potato, Mushroom and Leek Soup
Takes about 45-60 minutes, serves 4

• 1 Tbsp oil
• 2 large leeks, greens removed, halved and then sliced
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 tsp thyme
• 1 tsp rosemary
• 1 tsp sage
• 2 cups of mushrooms, any type (I am using oyster and cremini)
• 1 small pear, diced
• 1/2 cooking wine if you have it (I didn't..)
• 4 small red potatoes, diced
• 2 cups vegetable broth
• 2 cups water
• 1/2 cup milk (soy, almond, etc)

First get a large soup pot and heat oil on medium heat. Add the onions and garlic and cook for 5 minutes. Add the herbs and saute for another 5 minutes for until the onions are soft. Add the mushrooms and cook a little longer and a splash of water if things are starting to stick. Now add in all remaining ingredients, except for the milk. Bring it to a boil and then reduce to low. Simmer for 30-40 minutes.

Start with sauteing your onions and base vegetables. It will add depth to the soup

Next add the other vegetables..

Now add your liquid. You can always adjust later, so add just enough to cover everything

Lastly add in the milk and simmer another 10 minutes. And soup is ready! If you want you can take an immersion blender and blend out the soup a bit, or leave it chunky, that one is completely up to you. I tend to do a half and half. i think it makes a perfect consistency.

And last, garnish is you want. Or better yet, just eat out of the pot and save a dish

Next time you pick up a can of soup... think twice. For 10 minutes of work, and an hour of sitting around, you can make the perfect, personalized soup. Want to make it fancy? Add some sauteed mushrooms on top, or fresh thyme, cilantro, or toasted nuts (walnut, pine nuts I think would work well). 

This made a lot of soup, but I am planning to freeze it. Easily half this recipe if you don't want this much soup.