Potato and Ham Chowder {Lightened up!}

So that polar vortex was a whole thing, huh?! If we don't see temperatures that cold for a while, I really won't mind.

Soup, of course, was the perfect meal to defrost after the walk home from the subway. As we already know, I am soup crazed! I love making new pots of chowder whenever possible.

On Christmas Day (flashback!) I made Cory and I a Dr. Pepper glazed spiral ham (a laPioneer Woman!). Now, the thing about spiral hams is that it is basically impossible to find a reasonably-sized ham for a small crowd. So, let's just say that there were a few pounds of ham in our freezer for a while.

Thanks to this Potato and Ham Chowder recipe, I have finally used up the last big piece of ham! Should we have a party? If you ask me, this soup IS the party. Rich, potato soup loaded up with sweet corn, salty ham, crunchy celery and leeks. Don't be shy -- top a big, warm bowl of this chowder with a little grated cheese and chopped chives!

I lightened up this soup by using 1% milk and thinning it out with a little low sodium chicken broth. So, although not totally guilt free, I think we should definitely serve ourselves a second bowl.

Extra bonus--this is a ONE POT DINNER! My favorite!

Rustic Potato Soup

It started with a need to clean out some of my perishables. The holidays are coming which means I will be traveling. Nothing would ruin a fabulous Christmas and New Years than coming home to a fridge full of moldy milk, expired chicken broth, and brown wilted vegetables.

Soups (my one true food love) are always a great option for the "kitchen sink" type of meals. I absolutely love hearty soups with tons of veggies and rich, tender potatoes. I happened to have plenty of both on hand.

My go-to potato soups are usually rich and thick and creamy. Think baked potato soup, or potato leek.

When I started putting this soup together, I decided more justice would be served to the ingredients if I kept it a little lighter. Not quite a broth-based soup, but not a rich potato mash either.

What I ultimately plated up for dinner was a Rustic Potato Soup, served alongside a toasted baguette and topped with pecorino romano and green onions. It was light yet hearty at the same time. With the bread, it created a very simple and sophisticated dinner; and, like all great soups, it reheated beautifully for a lunch time treat the next day.

And it started as any good soup should. With carrots and celery.

Herbs got bundled together to create a vessel of flavor euphoria.

I gave my russet potatoes a nice, rustic peel. Peeling potatoes "rustically" means a very, very lazy woman had the task of removing some of the skin from these taters, and she certainly couldn't be bothered removing every last bit of it.

Into the pot everything goes, along with a secret flavor weapon....a parmesan rind!

Whenever get down to the very bottom of a block of parmesan, be sure to wrap the rinds well and save them as flavor agents for your soups! They will last for a long time in the fridge.

The soup will simmer away until the potatoes become tender and then a little bit of low-fat milk is mixed in for a slight creamy edge.

All the flavors are very delicate, and the additions of potato and milk lets it stick to your stomach. I suggest using this as a base and adding in whatever you may have lying around the kitchen like chicken, kale, spinach, leeks.

Potage Parmentier - Potato Leek Soup

"We should enjoy food and have fun. It is one of the simplest and nicest pleasures in life." - Julia Child, 1990

 

Julia Child was a pretty cool woman. In fact, "pretty cool" doesn't seem to fully embrace the kind of woman she was. She was spunky, talented, smart, funny, and loving. And of course, she loved food. The quote above is one of my favorites. Nothing can put me in a better mood than delicious, tasty foods--I'm sure Julia woud agree.

 

This past Wednesday would have been Julia's 100th birthday. Articles and blog posts about her and recipes inspired by her were all over the place! I won't pretend that I am some huge fan that worships everything Julia Child, but I personally was loving the great things honoring her this week. In case you missed it, this was the Google banner that day:

 

 

Love it! Those Google people are so dang creative.

 

Julia's creativity flourished in the kitchen. She embraced French cooking throughout her many years living in Paris and brought that cuisine into the kitchens of so many here in the States from her now infamous cookbook, "Mastering the Art of French Cooking."

 

In honor of her birthday, like many foodies out there, I wanted to try and cook a recipe from Julia. Many of her recipes require some impeccable skills and techniques and equipment, but when I stumbled upon this recipe, I knew I could do it.

 

So, ok, it's 80 degrees outside and we're having soup. But it's really, REALLY good soup.

 

Julia's Potage Parmentier -- that is, Potato Leek Soup -- adapted by yumsugar.com from the infamous aforementioned cookbook. Yes, please.

 

 

This soup was elegant, filling, and downright delicious. It is also a simpler recipe, and so any home cook could whip this up to impress house guests. It is honestly so delicious that it can (and SHOULD) be cooked year-round.