Soup was served at every evening meal in Monet's house. What a great idea. It sounds as if it was the customary 1st course. At our house, a delicious soup and a fresh rustic baked bread, and one of Grandma's beautiful salads is enough food to satisfy as our complete meal. Tonight I prepared Monet's Leek and Potato soup for our dinner. It is delicious. The soup and slices of a rustic French bread provided us with enough food for a hearty cold winter night dinner. Afterward, we relaxed in our living room listening to classical music and enjoying a fire in the fireplace.
I'm happy to have a beautiful used copy of Monet's Table, The Cooking Journals of Claude Monet. The book is available online and at bookshops. You might enjoy using this book to prepare meals for your table. This book contains beautiful photographs of Giverny, writing about the family's life at Giverny, and Monet's favorite recipes. The book contains recipes for Soups (11), Eggs, Sauces, Appetizers and Side Dishes, Poultry, Meat, Game, Fish, Desserts, Teas, Jams, and Preserves. I'll continue to prepare recipes from this book and post some on Grandpa's Home Cooking.
Soupe aux poireaux et pommes de terre (Leek and Potato Soup):
1/2 cup unsalted butter
6 large leeks, white parts only, cut into 1/2 inch slices
1 teaspoon salt
4 large potatoes, sliced (with slices quartered)
fresh parsley, chopped for garnish
seasonings
Provides 4 servings
Heat 1/4 cup of butter in a (heavy) pan and sauté the leeks. While they are cooking, heat 1 quart water with the salt to just below a boil. Add the water to the leeks, all at once. Cover the pan, reduce the heat and simmer for 45 minutes. Add the sliced (I quarter) potatoes, add seasonings, cover, and continue cooking the soup for 20 minutes. Add the rest of the butter before serving. Sprinkle parsley over the top of the soup. Delicious.
Now. A word about the potatoes. I researched this and learned from Kate's Global Kitchen that for making chowder and chunky soups one should select waxy low-starch varieties such as Superior, Kennebe, Red Bliss, and other white and red skinned potatoes. I selected red skin potatoes. Monet's recipe says to slice the potatoes. For ease of eating, I quartered the slices. The firm texture holds up even after a long simmer.
For rustic soups that rely solely on the starch from the potatoes to thicken them, the best are high starch russets or medium-starch Yukon Golds.
Monet's recipe said nothing about seasonings. Adding salt and pepper is a given. However, I use a mix of seasoning which includes salt, pepper, and garlic powder. I have a glass canning jar which contains a mix of 1 cup salt, 1/4th cup pepper, and 1/4th cup garlic powder. I added a couple of pinches of this seasoning to this soup. (I warmed leftover soup for lunch the day after and it was really good.)
And there you have it. Why not have one of Claude Monet's artistic soups for super. I'll be making another of his other favorite soups soon.
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