Confessions of a tired mom: Since I now have a budding career as a food photographer/stylist/writer/recipe developer my time and energy for actually making dinners has been dwindling. I find it ironic that I can make food look beautiful and mouthwatering, but struggle to get dinner on the table some nights because I’m too busy making it look good. I still muster time and energy, but there are some days where I understand why convenience foods were invented. On those nights, I try to make easier meals (because I’m tired) that I know all my kids love and won’t complain about (again, because I’m tired). One of my go-to recipes? A gluten free potato soup. (Honestly, I always thought potato soup was usually gluten free, but there are a lot that use flour! I’ve seen several recipes floating around that begin the recipe with a roux, which is melted butter and flour, used to thicken the soup. This recipe only uses a few basic ingredients, and is 100% gluten free.) If you’ve ever had, made or heard of potato leek soup, this is also a very basic version of that. If you don’t have leeks you can substitute shallots or onions.
This potato soup is the soup. It’s creamy, filling and delicious, which makes it a classic comfort food in the cold months. Maine has a lot of cold months, so potato soup was on my table a lot as a kid and I loved every spoonful. One of the reasons I love potato soup is it’s versatility- it can be made very herbaceous since potatoes don’t have a very dominating flavor. I love using thyme, rosemary, parsley or sage. You can also keep it simple and just sprinkle some salt, pepper and your herb of choice. If you’re feeling fancy then serve it with a splash of cream, spoonful of creme fraiche, or dollop of whipped cream. I love serving this soup alongside salad greens, with shredded carrots, cabbage and a balsamic dressing.
Gluten Free Potato Soup Ingredients
I’m calling it: if you could only make one soup for the rest of your life, I would recommend this gluten free potato soup.
Potatoes
Leeks or onions
Chicken or vegetable broth
Salt and pepper
Fresh or dried herbs, such as thyme, rosemary, sage, or parsley
Gluten Free Potato Soup
Ingredients
Method
- Start by chopping and rinsing the leeks. Cut the ends and dark green stems off (so you want only light green and white portion). Slice them in half the long way, and then chop into thin slices the horizontal way. Place all of the slices into a large bowl of cold water, and swish them around to remove any dirt. Grab them out of the water using your hands, squeeze off any excess water, and set them in a bowl.
- Set a large pot to low heat on the stove and add a couple lugs of olive oil, and let the oil warm up for just a minute.
- Add the sliced leeks to the pot. They will sizzle loudly since they will still be wet, and that's fine! Just stir them around and then let them cook until slightly wilted, about 5-7 minutes while stirring every so often.
- Meanwhile, prep your potatoes: Peel and chop the potatoes into 1" inch cubes, and set cubes in a colander as you chop. Rinse them with cold water and set aside.
- Once the leeks are slightly translucent and wilted, add the potatoes into the pot.
- Allow the potatoes and leeks to cook together for 3-4 minutes, then pour in the broth.
- Turn the heat of the stove up to high heat so that the soup comes to a boil. As it does, foam will appear on the surface of the broth. Use a spoon to scoop off the foam and discard. Boil the leeks and potatoes until the potatoes are quite soft, about 6-8 minutes.
- Once you can easily poke through a piece of potato with a fork, turn off the heat.
- To puree the soup you can use a blender, or a stick blender. If using a stick blender, then plug in and blend away until the soup is pureed to your likely. I like to leave a few chunky bits of potato, but if you prefer yours creamy and smooth then that's fine too! If you're using a blender or food processor, pour the soup into the blender (you may need to do this in two batches depending on the size of your blender) and pulse several times until smooth or mostly smooth. Pour the soup back into the pot.
- Once the soup is blended, set the stove back to low heat to simmer, and add salt, pepper, and herbs. Potatoes are very bland without salt, so I start with a generous 2 tsps and add more as needed. You may need even more if you're using a low sodium broth. Allow the soup to simmer for another 5-10 minutes before serving.
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