Potato leek soup is too short to truly describe all the flavors that make this bowl of deliciousness. Make it tonight and serve it with a slice of crusty bread to scoop up every last drop.

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Not to be confused with my cheddar baked potato soup or slow cooker potato soup, this potato leek soup has the added benefit of leeks and a slew of seasonings. It still tastes like comfort food but with a slightly fresher flavor profile. It may be warming up outside, putting a damper on soup season, but you might want to squeeze this one in real quick. Truly, it’s a quick one. And I got to use my favorite kitchen appliance – the immersion blender!

If you or someone you know makes homemade soups at any frequency, you should get an immersion blender. One of my least favorite kitchen appliances is the regular blender because blending hot liquids can be literally explosive, so I’d pick my immersion blender 10/10 times. I pretty much only use my blender for smoothies.

The best part of using an immersion blender is that I can easily see and control how blended I make my soups. I prefer soups like this potato leek soup and broccoli cheddar soup to still have chunks. In all honestly, I prefer most soups to be a bit chunky rather than creamy, unless it’s tomato soup.

But I’ve gushed over immersion blenders enough. Regardless of which type of blender you have, this soup will be a hit. With the usual suspects of onion and carrot as the base, with leek as a special friend, this potato leek soup is seasoned to perfection with dill, Italian seasoning, paprika, garlic, cumin, salt, and white pepper. Make it extra special with homemade chicken or vegetable broth and finish it with heavy cream before blending it up how you like it.

POTATO LEEK SOUP

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Yield: 6 Servings Prep Time: 15 Minutes Cooking Time: 45 Minutes 45 Minutes

Nutrition facts: 200 calories 20 grams fat

Ingredients

• 2 Tbsp olive oil
• 1 Tbsp butter
• 1 small sweet yellow onion, diced (scant 1 cup)
• 2 leeks sliced (about 1 cup)
• 4 cups chicken or vegetable broth
• 5 large potatoes peeled and chopped (about 5 heaping cups)
• 3 carrots, chopped (about 2 cups)
• 2 tsp dried dill
• 1 tsp Italian seasoning
• 1 tsp garlic powder
• 1 tsp paprika
• 1/2 tsp ground cumin
• 1 tsp salt, plus more to taste
• 1/2 tsp ground white black pepper, plus more to taste
• 1 cup cream
• Fresh parsley for garnish

Directions

1. Place a large Dutch oven or heavy-bottomed pot over medium heat. Add oil and butter. When warmed, add onion and leeks and cook 5 minutes or until softened and starting to brown.
2. Stir in the broth, potatoes, carrots, dill, Italian seasoning, garlic, paprika, cumin, salt, and white pepper. Bring to a boil over high head, then turn town to medium-low, cover, and cook about 30 minutes or until potatoes and carrots are soft. Season to taste with more salt or pepper if needed.
3. Reduce heat to low. Stir in the cream. Using an immersion blender*, blend until half of it is blended in, leaving half with chunks. blend part or all of the vegetables if desired.
4. Serve immediately topped with fresh parsley and a slice of good bread.

Notes

*You can also transfer into a regular blender if you don't have an immersion blender.

Source: Adapted from Savory with Soul.

This three cheese baked pasta cake with Swiss chard is so easy to prepare the most difficult part is deciding for which meal to serve it!

The secret’s out! This month for the Secret Recipe Club I cooked from Karen’s blog, Lavender and Lovage. She had so many creative recipes I didn’t know how I was going to pick just one! With things such as her Pumpkin, Kale and Walnut Galette with Pancetta and Onion Jam and Shaker Lemon Pie, I bookmarked several recipes. Actually, I had planned on making two recipes including Kentish Cherry Batter Pudding but sadly my cherries went bad while I was away for a weekend. Never fear, this pasta bake cake is here to save the day.

The three cheeses part of the title is what originally drew me to this recipe but the cheeses come in a slightly different variety than you may expect. The three are cream cheese, cottage cheese, and Parmesan. While on it’s own I am not a big fan of cottage cheese (it’s a texture thing), the combination with the other two is on point, especially with the Swiss chard. While this creamy pasta bake was suggested as a light lunch option served with a side salad, I decided to serve it for brunch with a side of cubed mango. It has eggs in it so it can totally pass for breakfast-y food, right?

Four years ago: BBQ Chicken Burgers

THREE CHEESE AND SWISS CHARD PASTA BAKE CAKE

Serves 6-8

Ingredients:

250 g (8.8 oz.) whole wheat penne pasta

350 g (1 bunch) fresh Swiss chard, trimmed and roughly chopped (about 3 cups)

4 eggs, lightly beaten

300g (10.5 oz.) low fat cottage cheese

150g (5.2 oz.) reduced fat cream cheese

100g (3.5 oz.) grated Parmesan cheese, plus some extra for the topping

1 tsp finely chopped fresh dill

Salt and pepper, to taste

Directions:

1. Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease and line a 9″ spring-form pan with parchment paper and set aside (could also use a 9-inch baking pan).
2. Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Cook the penne pasta for 10 minutes, add the chard and blanch for 2 additional minutes, then drain in a colander.
3. Put the pasta, chard, and all of the other ingredients into a large bowl and mix well, seasoning to taste with salt and pepper.
4. Spoon into the prepared pan, smooth the top and sprinkle with extra Parmesan cheese.
5. Bake for 30-35 minutes until the pasta bake cake has set and is golden brown.
6. Allow to cool in the tin for 5 minutes before removing. Cut into wedges and serve warm.

Source: Adapted slightly from Lavender and Lovage.

Change up your traditional creamy potato salad with this dill potato salad using red potatoes and fresh dill. It’s the perfect side for summer barbecues and cook outs.

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Today I am participating in the Secret Recipe Club, showcasing recipes from blogs we’ve been secretly cooking from this month. What makes the Secret Recipe Club even more fun is finally getting paired up with a blog that had yours in the past.

This month I was assigned to Melissa’s blog Fried Ice and Donut Holes and she previously was assigned to mine when she made my Greek Yogurt Everything Bagels which was super awesome as that recipe was the result of when I was going through my experimenting-with-Greek-yogurt-in-yeast-breads-and-pastas phase. Always nice to get validation that an experimental recipe worked for others!

After reading through her extensive list of recipes, I settled on the dill potato salad as I thought it would be the perfect side to kick start grilling season. Normally I would never stray from my dad’s potato salad but this dill laiden one sounded like a must make.

Instead of mayonnaise it should come as no surprise that I used plain Greek yogurt but other than that I did not alter the ingredients. I brought it to a cookout at my friend’s housewarming party last weekend and it was quite the hit.

Next I have got to try the recipe for Caprese Eggs Benedict for One! The Buffalo Chicken Salad with Creamy Avocado Ranch Dressing and obviously the Chocolate Covered Peanut Butter Pretzel Tart were also high on my list of things to make this month. Head on over to Fried Ice and Donut Holes for these and other great recipes.

Post updated on 7/20/22. Photo above is the original.

DILL POTATO SALAD

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Yield: 6-8 servings Prep Time: 1 Hour 15 Minutes Cooking Time: 25 Minutes 25 Minutes

Nutrition facts: 200 calories 20 grams fat

Ingredients

• 3 lb. red potatoes
• 1 egg (still in its shell)
• 1 Tbsp Salt
• 1 cup plain Greek yogurt
• 1/4 cup buttermilk
• 2 Tbsp dijon mustard
• 1/2 cup fresh dill, chopped
• Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
• 1/2 cup celery, chopped
• 1/2 cup red onion, chopped

Directions

1. Place the potatoes, egg, and salt in a large pot of cold water. Bring the water to a boil, then lower the heat and simmer for about 15-20 minutes, until the potatoes are tender and can easily be pierced with a knife. Drain the potatoes and egg and set aside to cool slightly.
2. Meanwhile in a large bowl, whisk together the yogurt, buttermilk, mustard, dill, and black pepper. Set aside.
3. When the potatoes are cool enough to handle, cut them into quarters. Peel the egg and chop. Add potatoes, egg, celery, and onion to the large bowl with the yogurt mixture and gently toss to coat. Refrigerate for at least an hour or overnight to allow for the flavors to meld. Serve chilled or at room temperature.

Source: Slightly adapted from Fried Ice and Donut Holes, originally adapted from Ina Garten.

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Have too many cookbooks that you never cook from? Time to join Pass the Cook Book Club! Every month a cookbook is chosen and three recipes are picked out for us to choose from to make. This month’s cookbook was the Smitten Kitchen Cookbook! Deb’s blog was one of the first food blogs I started reading, so I was really excited to get into these recipes. I chose the Cheddar Swirl Breakfast Buns because I have made many cinnamon swirl buns, but never a savory breakfast bun!

When I started to make these for breakfast Sunday morning this past weekend, I was a little upset to see rise times of 2 hours, twice. However, it ended up only taking about an hour each time in my warmer than usual apartment. I’m telling you, the only benefit to hot days are shorter rise times with yeast. Evidently I should always make yeast doughs when it’s hot out. But I digress…

Regardless of the rise time, these rolls are worth the wait. I ate them with some fruit since I ended up eating some cereal while I waited, but I think they would be great with eggs and bacon. In fact, I went ahead and made an egg breakfast sandwich with a leftover bun to prove it (shared on Twitter).

One year ago: Zucchini Ribbon Pasta with Creamy Lemon-Basil Sauce

CHEDDAR SWIRL BREAKFAST BUNS

Makes 12 buns

Ingredients:

DOUGH

3 cups all-purpose flour

1 tsp salt

Few grinds black pepper

1 Tbsp sugar

2-1/4 tsp (1 packet) active dry yeast

1 cup milk

FILLING

5 Tbsp unsalted butter, melted, cooled to lukewarm, divided

1/2 cup grated white onion

1-1/2 cup grated sharp cheddar cheese

2 tsp fresh minced dill

1/2 tsp salt

Few grinds black pepper

Directions:

1. Combine the flour, salt, pepper, and sugar in the bottom of a large bowl. In a small bowl, whisk the yeast into the milk until it dissolves, then pour the yeast-milk mixture into the flour, mix them together with the paddle of an electric mixer or wooden spoon until a shaggy ball forms.
2. If you are using a mixer, switch to the dough hook, and knead on low about 6 minutes, or until smooth and slightly sticky ball has formed. If you are making these be hand, turn out the dough onto a lightly floured surface and knead for another 8 minutes until smooth.
3. Place the dough in a lightly oiled bowl, cover with plastic wrap. Let it rest until doubled in size, about 2 hours. Alternatively, you could chill the dough at this point over night, up to 3 days, then bring it back to room temp and pick up where you left off.
4. Scoop the dough out of the bowl onto well-floured counter, and roll into a 12×16 rectangle. Brush 4 tablespoons melted butter over the dough. Mix remaining filling ingredients and spread over the rectangle, leaving a 1/2-inch border at the short ends. Roll tightly and from one short end to another, making a 12” log. With a sharp serrated knife, carefully cut into 12 one-inch rounds.
5. Using parchment paper, line the bottom of two small pans, 9” rounds or 8” square, or one 9×13 baking pan, and arrange 6 rolls in each of the smaller pans or all 12 in the larger, with an even amount of space in between. Brush tops with remaining 1 tablespoon melted butter, cover pans with plastic wrap, and let rise at room temp until doubled again, about 2 hours. When almost doubled, preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
6. Once buns have fully doubled, baked for 20 – 25 minutes, until tops are golden and cheese is bubbling from the center. Serve immediately.

Source: Smitten Kitchen Cookbook, page 49.