Cheesy Leek and Mustard Soup

Happy Dr. Who day! This month's theme is French Bistro, and since panini's and frittes were already covered, what was left for me but my favorite...soup! Searched my recipe box, and this was the closest soup I could find that seemed like it would be served in a bistro. Plus, I got to use up most of the leeks I had frozen after making Colcannon. Bonus!

Cheesy Leek and Mustard Soup

        Ingredients
Makes 4 to 6 servings
 1 1/2 pounds leeks, sliced
 1 onion, chopped
 1 potato, cubed
 1 carrot, chopped
 1 tablespoon butter
 1 tablespoon olive oil
 1 1/4 teaspoons dry mustard powder
 2 teaspoons cornstarch
 1/2 cup water
 salt and pepper to taste
 1 teaspoon white sugar
 5 cups water
 1 cube vegetable bouillon
 1 cup heavy whipping cream
 1/8 cup shredded Gruyere cheese
 1/4 cup shredded Cheddar cheese

          Directions

1) In a large pot over medium heat, saute the leeks, onion, potato and carrot in the butter or margarine and the olive oil for 10 minutes, or until all vegetables are tender.

2) Mix the mustard powder and cornstarch with the 1/2 cup water to make a thin paste. Set aside.

3) Season the vegetable mixture with salt and pepper and sugar. Stir in the mustard-water mixture and the 5 cups water. Bring mixture to a boil. Stir in the bouillon cube, reduce heat and simmer for about one hour, until reduced by half.

4) Using a hand blender or upright blender, puree mixture until frothy but not completely smooth.

5) Return this to the pot and bring to a boil. Stir in the heavy cream, Gruyere and Cheddar cheeses. Heat until cheeses melt, do not boil. Serve hot.

    Ok, so much yum happening in this recipe! I used about 1 and 1/2 cup of chopped leeks - more of a guesstimate than actual measuring. I used two medium potatoes (peeled and chopped) and 3 small carrots, as I wasn't sure how big the potato and carrot was supposed to be! I think that ratio worked out just fine, though I did add an extra dash of olive oil, just in case. Sauteed all the veggies for about 15 minutes, then added the seasonings and liquid. Instead of a vegetable bullion cube, I used my chicken stock bullion mix. Simmered for the hour, and then blended. Just an FYI - blending hot liquid makes the top spit at you when you start it! It blended really well, coming out to a nice mustardy color. Added the cream and about 1/2 cup of Gruyere cheese and 1/2 cup Sharp Cheddar. I love cheese, so the more the better! I don't think my simmering reduced the soup by half, so it helped thicken it up just a smidge more. Served with a hearty slice of French bread, and it's a meal fit for a king.
     This soup has a great flavor, and the leeks are not too over-powering. I could have added more mustard with no ill effects, and I did have to add some additional salt at the end. It's hard to add seasonings "to taste" when you're only half way through the recipe!

World's Best Bacon Cheese Dip

I'm back! And there is a new addition to the blog - if you look in the upper right corner, there is a now a search bar! I was feeling like I didn't want to keep adding more recipes, because I could never remember what month I put what recipes, and I wasn't able to find recipes without looking through all the months. I will be adding tags to older recipes, and will try to add as much detail to the tags in order to make it easy for you to find recipes. Search by recipe or ingredient, and voila!
To start off the weekend of blogging (which is the plan...playing catch up!), I just made a bacon cheese dip that was fabulous for my special group. The recipe says it makes enough for 16...it lies. I would say maybe 6. It's yummy, so make lots!

World's Best Bacon Cheese Dip

Ingredients


4 slices bacon
1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese, softened
1 cup mayonnaise
8 ounces Swiss cheese, shredded
2 green onions, finely chopped
4 buttery round crackers, crushed

Directions

Place bacon in a large skillet. Cook over medium-high heat until evenly brown. Drain, crumble, and set aside.
In a small bowl, mix the cream cheese with mayonnaise until smooth. Stir in Swiss cheese, onions, and bacon. Place bowl in microwave, and cook 2 minutes. Remove, and stir well. Return to microwave, and cook 2 to 4 minutes more. Sprinkle crushed crackers on top. Serve warm with crackers.

For something that is called "World's Best Bacon Cheese Dip", 4 pieces of bacon is really sub-par. I recommend using a package of bacon, minus the one that you eat. Cook bacon in whatever method suits you best - I did pan fry these, but my favorite method is baking. I don't really like mayonnaise that much, so I  eye-balled the Miracle Whip to about 1/2 cup, added a little over a cup of shredded Swiss, and about 1/2 cup of freshly shredded Parmesan cheese. I didn't have any green onions on hand, so I used my freeze-dried chives (which are super handy to have around for times like this!). To give it a little extra something, I also added a couple shakes of garlic powder and onion powder. I think it would be a little on the bland side without some kind of extra seasoning. I then crushed a little mini package of Ritz crackers (about 15 I think in the package) to sprinkle on top. You definitely can serve it at that point, but I then baked it uncovered  at 350 degrees for about 20 minutes. It was DELICIOUS! The Miracle Whip gave a little sweetness, and all the cheese made it very hearty- it may break your dipping crackers! I may look for an additional ingredient next time I make it that would still give it a cheesy taste, but thin it out a little bit without make it too greasy (which is what I was worried about with adding the required amount of Mayo). 

    We are being commissioned at Stephen Minister's this weekend at church. I'm both excited and nervous (not really a big fan of standing in front of a bunch of people!). At least I only have to say my name...hopefully that won't be too challenging........... .......Anywho....... It's nice being done with the weekly commitment of training (hello 50+ hours of my life that I could have spent doing much less useful things). We still have bi-monthly meetings to attend, and me being me, my goal is to not miss any meetings, despite the fact that I have yet to acquire care receiver. 

     Stephen Ministry is great for teaching you how to effectively interact with people - if you don't know about it, I encourage you to check it out. It's all about being assertive, speaking the truth tempered with love, and how to really be there to help someone through a crisis. It's a process-oriented ministry - the goal is not to immediately jump to "do this, this, and that, your problems will be solved". It's about encouraging the care receiver to grow, and to process what they are going through, and to just listen. Even if I never got a care receiver  it would be worth it just for getting (hopefully!!) those skills.