This post for potato leek soup with olive oil is in collaboration with Carapelli. All views are my own.

I haven’t posted a soup recipe in quite a while, so I figure it’s time. Just kidding. You know I love soup more than pretty much anything, and fall and winter are the perfect seasons to highlight all of my favorites.

I’ve been building quite the collection of recipes over the past few years, but there are lots more to come. And this one - potato leek soup with olive oil - is divine.

Potato Leek Soup with Olive Oil in white bowls

Potato leek soup = 2 thumbs up

For this soup, the olive oil portion is highlighted very specifically.

I use olive oil in so much of my cooking - in Mediterranean dishes, to sauté vegetables, to make salad dressings and as a ‘finisher’, and I decided I needed to step up my game on the quality of EVOO I use.

I’ll admit, I haven’t always used the highest quality.

I used to grab whatever was available at my supermarket, but once I had a taste of really good olive oil, I just could not go back. And because I use it so frequently, I don’t want to skimp.

Learn my soup tips and tricks

And that’s why I drizzle it alllll over my potato leek soup. It is literally the best for finishing a dish because it gives that nutty, fruity amazing olive oil flavor, plus it adds a creamy richness to the soup.

The soup itself is made of leeks (and a lot of them), celery, aromatics (garlic, bay, thyme), potatoes, liquid gold (stock) and is pureed until super smooth, then finished with a few of my secret soup ingredients.

Lemon - acidic ingredients provide unique flavor, a hint of ‘freshness’, cuts through the richness and somewhat mimics salt (somewhat...)
Cream – pureed vegetable soups love cream; it provides texture and, well, creaminess
Bouillon - to make your liquid gold extra gold; aka makes your stock extra flavorful
Worcestershire or soy sauce – for a bit of umami
Cayenne – not necessarily to make it spicy, but to provide a ‘background’ flavor and bit of heat that elevates the soup
Olive oil drizzle – that perfect finishing touch

And while we’re at it, we may as well drizzle olive oil over pretty much everything else we eat. Because, why not?

For more information and a store locator (for the olive oil), please visit CarapelliOliveOil.com and be sure to check out Carapelli’s social channels: Facebook and Instagram.

Potato Leek Soup with Olive Oil

Print Recipe

A luscious vegetable soup finished with aromatics, lemon, cream and olive oil.

Author: Julie Andrews
Prep Time: 20 min
Cook Time: 30 min
Total Time: 50 min
Yield: Serves 8 1x
Category: Soup
Method: Stove-Top
Cuisine: American

Ingredients

Scale

6 tablespoons Carapelli Unfiltered Organic Extra Virgin Olive Oil, divided
1 medium leek, cleaned and sliced
2 medium stalks celery, diced
2 cloves garlic, peeled and minced
2-2 ½ teaspoons coarse salt
½ teaspoon freshly cracked black pepper, divided
5 cups unsalted vegetable or chicken stock
6 medium russet potatoes, peeled and cubed (about 2 ½ lbs.)
1 bay leaf
3 sprigs fresh thyme
2-3 cubes (or teaspoons) unsalted all-natural bouillon
Zest and juice of 1 large lemon
4-5 tablespoons heavy cream or half and half
1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
Pinch cayenne pepper
Pinch of granulated sugar (optional)

Instructions

In a Dutch oven or stock pot, heat 3 tablespoons olive oil to medium-low heat. Add the leek and celery and sauté 7-8 minutes, until soft. Stir in garlic, salt and ¼ teaspoon black pepper.
Add chicken stock and bring to a simmer. Add potatoes, bay leaf and thyme sprigs and cook 15-20 minutes or until potatoes are tender. Discard bay leaf and thyme sprigs.
Use an immersion blender* to puree the soup until very smooth. Stir in bouillon, lemon zest and juice, cream or half and half, Worcestershire sauce and cayenne pepper. Taste and adjust seasoning, if necessary.
Serve soup in bowls and drizzle with remaining 3 tablespoons of Carapelli Unfiltered Organic Extra Virgin Olive and dust with remaining ¼ teaspoon black pepper.

Notes

Cooking Tip: If you do not have an immersion blender, transfer soup to a blender and puree until smooth. Take caution with pureeing hot food by removing plug on the lid of your blender and covering it with a kitchen towel to let some steam escape.

Cooking Tip: If the soup tastes a bit bland, add salt. If it tastes like it’s not quite balanced, add sugar.

Nutrition

Serving Size: ⅛ of recipe
Calories: 369
Sugar: 6
Sodium: 476
Fat: 14
Saturated Fat: 4
Unsaturated Fat: 10
Trans Fat: 0
Carbohydrates: 57
Fiber: 6
Protein: 7
Cholesterol: 12

Keywords: easy, healthy, comfort food, simple, from scratch

I was selected for this opportunity as a member of CLEVER and the content and opinions expressed here are all my own.