Just this week, our wonderful college student babysitter asked me about cooking and where to start. I told her the same thing I tell everyone: with soup. My first lessons in cooking came from the old school Moosewood Cookbook. The soup section was where I started and I learned the basic techniques and gained the confidence I needed to adjust the recipes to my own liking (consistency, flavor, seasoning, etc). Soup is also incredibly nourishing, relatively inexpensive, feeds a crowd and makes great leftovers.

I feel like you can never have enough soup recipes — so today on Minnesota Live, I shared my Potato, Leek & Bacon Soup. This is a true one-pot operation and it can be gussied up with extra bacon, homemade sourdough croutons, a dollop of sour cream or creme fraiche, chopped green onions and/or some grated sharp white cheddar.

Potato, Leek & Bacon Soup

Gather this:

• 1/2 pound bacon, chopped
• 1/2 medium yellow onion, chopped
• 2 carrots, peeled and chopped
• 2 stalks of celery, chopped
• 2 medium sized russet potatoes, peeled and chopped
• 2 large cloves of garlic, minced
• 1 tsp minced fresh rosemary
• 2 tsp salt
• 1 tsp freshly cracked pepper
• 1 leek, white and light green part, sliced horizontally and the cut into half moons (make sure you rinse the leeks in cold water to remove grit and sand)
• 32 ounces chicken bone broth
• 1 cup heavy cream

Do this:

In a soup pot or Dutch oven, add the chopped bacon. Heat the pot over medium heat and cook until the bacon is done, remove with a slotted spoon and set aside. To the bacon fat left in the pan, add the onion, carrot and celery and stir. Sauté for about 5 minutes. Add the potatoes, garlic and rosemary and sauté another five minutes. Season with the salt and pepper. Add the leeks, stirring to coat and pour in the broth.

Bring the soup to a simmer and simmer for about 25 minutes, until the potatoes are tender. At this point, you can decide on the texture of your soup. I like to ladle several cups into my blender and process until smooth. You can leave the soup as is, pureé the entire contents of the pot or take your immersion blender and blitz to your desired consistency.

Turn off the heat and add the cream into the pot. Add the bacon pieces back in and stir, reserving some for garnish if you’d like. Check seasoning and add more salt and pepper if needed. Add optional garnishes and serve.