Potato Leek Soup

Winter has finally shown it's frosty face here in Philadelphia and I'm desperately digging out all my comfort food recipes, pulling my blinds shut and hunkering down under a blanket.  To be honest, all I really want is a big down comforter, Harry Potter (yes, I know those books are old news and I've already read them 7 times) and a big bowl of steamy soup.  My new favorite?

Potato Leek.

I've taken snippets from several recipes and made it my own.  It's delish.  I highly recommend.
PS - if you want a word document of this, email me..

Dani's Potato Leek Soup

Ingredients
1lb Leeks - cleaned and dark green parts removed
2 slices thick cut bacon - chopped
4 TBSP unsalted butter
4 small Yukon gold potatoes, peeled and diced small
3 small Yukon gold potatoes, diced into "bite-size soup pieces" (peel if you want)
1 quart chicken broth (or vegetable)
1 C heavy cream
1/2 tsp white pepper
Snipped Chives - for garnishing
Finely Shredded Sharp Cheddar - for garnishing

Directions
1. Using a sharp knife, halve the white part of the leek lengthwise and rinse well under cold running water to get rid of any sand. Slice thinly and set aside.

2. In a 6-quart saucepan over medium heat, melt 3TBSP butter. Add the leeks and a heavy pinch of salt and sweat for 5 minutes. Decrease the heat to medium-low and cook until the leeks are tender, 25 minutes, stirring occasionally. - They should have cooked down quite a bit and be a golden color. (and smell amazing)

3. While the leeks are cooking, add 1TBSP butter to frying pan and add the chopped bacon.  Cook until crispy.  - (You could probably just fry the bacon and then chop it... whatever works best)

4. Back to the soup - after the leeks have cooked 25 minutes, add the 4 diced, peeled, potatoes and 1quart broth, increase the heat to medium-high, and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to low, cover, and gently simmer until the potatoes are soft, 45 minutes.

5. Turn off the heat and puree the soup mixture with an immersion blender until smooth. (If you don't have an immersion blender, pour small batches of the soup into a regular blender and return to pot)

6. Add the 3 remaining potatoes and cook in soup (on medium low) until potatoes are fork tender.*** About another 30-40 minutes.

7. Stir in the heavy cream, and white pepper. Taste and adjust seasoning if desired.

8. Sprinkle with chives, cheese and crispy bacon pieces

9. Serve immediately with a thick, crusty piece of garlic bread


*** If you want to cut down on cooking time you can boil the 3 diced potatoes ahead of time and add them but I think they taste better if they're cooked in the soup!