Sunday Soup

Recently, the food offered by the cafeteria at work has gone down in quality and up in price. I also find myself buying fried stuff way too often. Therefore, I've decided that I need to bring my lunch more often. Given everything else going on in my life, I've realized that the only way that this is going to happen is if I make soup every Sunday. I might add some other leftovers in here and there, but rather than coming up with more complicated entries, I'm going to stick with soup for now. It's cheap, it's easy, and it makes a big batch. What more could I ask for?

This week's soup is a recipe that my MIL gave me several years ago. I make this a couple of times a year. My MIL likes it served cold with dill. I like it warm with lots of ground pepper and croutons. It's a very flexible and forgiving soup, and you can flavor it anyway you'd like. Just add the seasonings at the end, after you've pureed the soup.

Pureed Carrot Soup

1 Tbsp olive oil
2 leeks (or onion, but it's better with leeks)
a couple of cloves of garlic, to taste
1 lb. carrots
3 med. potatoes
1 box of fat-free chicken broth (or veggie broth)
1 bayleaf

Chop all the vegetables. In the bottom of a soup pot, heat the oil. Add the chopped leek and saute until almost soft. Add the garlic and saute another minute or two. Add all of the other ingredients. Add enough water if needed to cover the vegetables. Bring to a boil. Reduce to a simmer. Cook until carrots and potatoes are soft.

REMOVE THE BAY LEAF.

Using a hand blender, puree the soup. Add a little more water if the consistency is too sticky. Serve hot or cold.