Leek and Potato Soup

I think springtime is a nice time for leek and potato soup.
I had previously made this soup and had some left in the fridge, and the other week when some black truffle was delivered to my door, I couldn’t help crumbling a couple of slices into the reheated soup. It was a superb blend of flavours.
If you want this soup to be truly fantastic, you should use an abundance of leeks. I use an equal quantity of leek and potato. Otherwise, the soup turns out like watery mashed potatoes, and that’s dreadfully boring.
And while we are on the subject of flavour, I use a combination of different potatoes- waxy Desires and King Edwards for flavour, and floury Toolangi Delights for creamy texture. The earthiness of the potato is accentuated by adding a touch of cumin.
Chilled leek and potato soup, otherwise known as Vichyssoise, has never appealed to me. I like this soup hot, but if you prefer it chilled, then please yourself.

Components
500g sliced leek, white part only
1 tsp ground cumin
500g cubed and peeled potatoes
Butter or duck fat
1 brown onion, chopped
1 garlic clove, finely chopped
Stock
Sea salt
Black pepper
Bacon lardons, fried until golden brown
Sour cream
Sea salt
Fresh black pepper

Process.
Begin by making sure your leeks are dirt-free. You may need to rinse them thoroughly.
Heat the butter or duck fat and sweat the leek, onion and garlic over a gentle heat for about 20-30 minutes. It is important that the leek cooks right down, but don’t allow to brown.
Add the cumin and continue to cook for another minute.
Add the potatoes. Cover with stock and simmer for 30 minutes.
Puree the soup- I leave mine a little chunky.
Season with salt and pepper.
Serve with crispy bacon lardons and sour cream. Makes about four serves.

Pheasant Roasted with Orange & Cumin

Pheasant tastes like very, very good chicken. I like to roast the exotic bird with orange and cumin in a scorching oven for a short moment until barely cooked. It will have retained the gloriously sweet juices when cooked like this, making it a delight to eat. The breast will be sweet and moist. The legs however will be a little on the tough side. Unfortunately that’s the nature of the beast. Chefs like to remove the sinews in the leg. I haven’t worked out how to do this so I simply leave them as nature intended.
Don’t worry too much if the pheasant hasn’t browned in the short amount of time required to cook. In this example, taste is far more important than appearance. Overdone pheasant is an offense against heaven.
I know the amount of butter stipulated may alarm those on low fat diets. However keep in mind that pheasant like most game birds is lean, and needs a generous amount of fat to remain moist and succulent.

Ingredients
1 pheasant, backbone removed and spatchcocked
100g cultured unsalted butter
Juice of 2 oranges
Zest of 1 orange, finely julienned
1 tsp ground cumin
1 garlic clove, finely chopped
1 tsp finely chopped rosemary
1 fresh bay leaf, finely chopped
100ml dry sherry or other fortified wine
1-2 ladles pheasant stock
Sea salt
Fresh black pepper

Method
Pat the pheasant dry with paper towels (the marinade will not adhere otherwise).
Melt the butter and combine it with the juice of 1 orange, the zest, cumin, garlic, rosemary, bay, salt and pepper.
Pour the mixture onto the pheasant; making sure to coat the bird completely. I do this part in the roasting tray so that none of the precious marinade is lost; it will form part of the sauce at the end.
Allow to marinade in the fridge for up 24hrs or at room temperature for a few hours.
When you are ready to roast the bird, turn your oven to the highest setting. The oven needs to be really hot- about 250c. Make sure the bird is at room temperature before roasting.
Roast the bird skin side down first, for 10 minutes. Turn over and roast for another 10 minutes.
Remove the bird from the oven and double wrap with foil. Allow to rest for 20 minutes.
Pour all the juices from the roasting pan into a small saucepan, along with the sherry, stock and remaining orange juice. Reduce until syrupy.
Check the seasoning- add more salt/ sugar.
Cut the bird into pieces or as you desire and serve with the “orange jus”.
Roast potatoes make a good accompaniment.
1 pheasant will serve 2 people nicely.

PS. Mike wanted to call this post: Pleasant Peasant Pheasant. Try saying that fast 3 times..

Beetroot and Carrot Soup

Today’s recipe is not only easy to make, but beautiful to look at and more importantly, beautiful to eat as well. I am absolutely mad about beetroots, and if I were to compile a list of my favorite ingredients, I would include them in the top ten.
I took the inspiration for this soup from “Gennaro’s Italian Year” by Gennaro Contaldo, a wonderful book I recently read. And when I say inspiration, that’s exactly what I mean. My version and his version couldn’t be more different. The original soup is rather austere in the way that Italian soups tend to be. In my creation I have taken the liberty to use two very un-Italian flavors. Cumin to complement the root vegetables, and cream whipped with mustard to accessorise the finished puree.


Ingredients
15g butter
1 tbsp olive oil
1 red onion, finely chopped
1 celery stalk, finely chopped
1 garlic clove, finely chopped
2 tsp ground cumin
650g carrot, peeled and chopped
650g beetroots, peeled and chopped
650g potato, peeled and chopped
Stock (I used chicken stock cubes)
1 tsp brown sugar
100ml cream (35% milk fat) or milk
Sea salt
Fresh pepper (black and white)
Raspberry vinegar, to taste
Freshly chopped parsley
Cream and wholegrain mustard, whipped together

Method.
Gently cook the onion, celery and garlic in the butter and oil in a soup pot. Sauté for about 15 minutes or until softened. Do not allow to become golden.
Add the cumin and sauté for another minute.
Add the carrot, beetroot and potato. Cover with stock and add the sugar. Simmer for 1 hour, or until the beetroot is tender.
Allow to cool.
Puree the soup using whatever apparatus you happen to own. Add the cream or milk. Adjust the consistency of the soup to suit, using stock, milk or water.
Reheat and season to taste with salt, both peppers and a splash of raspberry vinegar. The vinegar is there to provide a touch of background acidity to balance the sweetness of vegetables, and richness of the cream. Use the vinegar sparingly. Ideally you don’t want the soup to taste of vinegar, and certainly not of raspberries.
Serve in soup bowls garnished with parsley and the mustard cream.
Note-I used about 100ml of cream to 2 tsp of wholegrain mustard.