Vichyssoise is a creamy, super-smooth cold leek and potato soup, and this version takes the name in vain. Not only is it made with celery hearts instead of leeks, it’s eaten hot with scoops of creamed goat’s cheese and dill (on the menu in force tomorrow in a chicken gratin). So apologies to Louis Diat, the chef who claimed to have invented vichyssoise in 1917 – I’m stealing the name for this silky and subtly flavoured nectar. Serve it chilled if you wish but without the goat’s cheese and dill garnish, adding finely snipped chives like the original.
Serves 4
Prep 20 min
Cook 30 min
INGREDIENTS
Method
Trim the celery then, holding the pieces together, slice in thin rounds. Rinse thoroughly. Halve, peel and finely chop the onion. Peel and mince the garlic. Melt the butter in a spacious lidded pan, stir in the celery, onion and garlic with a generous pinch of salt. Cover and sweat, stirring occasionally, until soft but uncoloured; 10-15 min. Stir in peeled, diced and rinsed potatoes then add stock or water. Simmer until tender, puree then pass through a fine sieve – vital for the super-smooth finish. Add the milk, taste for seasoning and reheat with the cream; if very thick, slacken with extra milk, stock or water. Serve very hot with a teaspoonful of cheese and a sprinkling of chopped dill leaves.
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