Thursday, April 14, 2011

What does one do when being offered a large, raw, fresh clove of spring garlic?

Taze, taze,” the satıcı repeatedly told me.

“Yes, I understand it’s fresh,” I wanted to tell him. But my husband and I both took a bite, nodded and smiled. “Evet, taze.”

Then, we bought a bunch of the yeni sarımsak (new garlic).


After we bought the garlic at the pazar, I decided to buy a kilo of pırasa (leeks) and 1.5 kilos of sarı patates (yellow potatoes). I was already thinking how I could use these ingredients in my kitchen. I decided I would make a version of the classic French leek and potato soup known as potage parmentier ala Julia Child

So the other day, I spent a few hours in the kitchen cleaning and chopping up a bunch of vegetables. I really didn’t need all those leeks. Most of them I placed in plastic bags and threw in the freezer.

Normally, you would use an equal amount of leeks to potatoes in this soup. However, I used half garlic and half leeks in proportion to the yellow potatoes. The soup gains a bit of richness by finishing it with whole milk or cream.

The soup simply smells and taste good. It tastes like spring to me! I hope you enjoy it as much as we did.

Afiyet olsun!

Bahar Sarımsak Çorbası: Spring Garlic Soup
(Inspired by Julia Child’s recipe of potage parmentier in “Mastering the Art of French Cooking”)

Ingredients:
16 oz. yellow potatoes, peeled and diced into large chunks
8 oz. leeks, thinly sliced
8 oz. fresh spring garlic, thinly sliced
1.5 qts. water or chicken stock
TT salt and freshly ground black pepper
4-6 T. whole milk or heavy cream

1. In a large pot, melt a little vegetable oil or butter. Add the vegetables. Sweat for about 10 minutes, until the vegetables start to soften. 
2. Then, partially cover the vegetables with about 2 cups of the water or chicken stock. Simmer 30-40 minutes until the vegetables are tender.
3. Add the remaining water and bring the soup to a simmer. Season the soup with salt and pepper.
4. Using a immersion blender, roughly puree the soup. The soup does not need to be completely soup.
5. Off the heat and just before serving, stir in the milk or cream. Ladle the soup into bowls and serve.

Tagged: , , ,

1 comments:

Tina Maxima said...

look delicious,must to try that:))