Buttered Leaks and Potatoes

Leeks are something that I have never cooked myself until this summer, and boy I am glad that I did. Leeks are in the same plant genus as onions, garlic, shallots, chives, and scallions; therefore, I knew they would be a great flavor addition to a summer meal. I have been seeing them the past few weekends at the market at Blue Sky Farms and this weekend I finally grabbed some to experiment with.

One of my favorite leek dishes is potato and leek soup, but that didn’t feel right in the summertime. I still wanted to incorporate potatoes in some way because I also grabbed some at the market. I boiled and baked baby potatoes and sautéed the leeks in butter on the stove to top them with. I cannot lie, this is one of my favorite meals that I have made in awhile. The leeks only take about 30 minutes on the stove and can be saved to use in later meals. I added some cheddar cheese and nutritional yeast that I had in my refrigerator and it was a very satisfying dinner! If there is anything out of this recipe you decide to make though, make sure its the leeks because they pair well with so many things!

fresh produce from local farmers

Blue Sky Farms:

leeks
baby purple and yellow potatoes
green onion

Al Hamka Farms

dry garlic

Ingredients

buttered leeks
- 2 leeks, cut and sliced
- 1 tablespoon of salt
- a pinch of black pepper
- 2 tablespoons butter
baby baked potatoes
- 5-6 larger baby potatoes
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 teaspoon salt
- a pinch of black pepper
- a pinch crushed red pepper flakes
- 4-5 cloves dry garlic, for roasting
- (optional) 1/4 cup cheese of choice
- 1/4 cup chopped green onion for topping

the process

begin by rinsing off the baby potatoes (try to choose the biggest ones in the bunch)
add the rinsed potatoes to a medium pot and cover with cold water
add a pinch of salt into the water and bring it to a boil
once the water is boiling, reduce to a medium heat and let cook for 10-15 minutes (or until fork tender)
preheat the oven to 425 degrees farenheit
while the potatoes were boiling, I prepared the leeks
make sure to wash your leeks very well, since the leaves can be exposed they have a lot of dirt.
since the leeks are cooked on low for 30 minutes, the top more greener parts of the leaf loose their bitter taste. This means you can use a majority of the leek (yay sustainability!!)
begin by cutting the bottoms off and any of the top that is loose and very dark green
next, cut the leeks down the middle
lay the leeks cut side down, and slice
add the leeks to a large bowl of cold water for 10 minutes to remove any excess dirt
while the leeks are soaking, prepare the potatoes for roasting
toss the potatoes in the olive oil, salt, black pepper, and red pepper
place the potatoes on a sheet of aluminum foil with the dry garlic
completely cover the potatoes with the foil and roast for 35-40 minutes
add 1 tbsp of the butter to a large pan on low heat
using a strainer, remove the leeks from the water and add to a pan
make sure to not tip the bowl over because the dirt is all in the bottom of the water. instead, scoop the leeks out of the bowl with a smaller strainer
add the salt and stir well
cover and let cook on low for 30 minutes, stirring every 5
chop up a couple green onions to have ready for topping (I used 2 but this is totally up to your own preferences)
once the potatoes are done roasting, remove them from the oven and let cool for a few minutes
cut the potatoes in half
place the potatoes on a plate (I added more salt and pepper at this step)
once the leeks are done, add the other tablespoon of butter and more salt.
stir to combine
top the potatoes with the leeks and green onions
(optional) add your cheese of choice and enjoy!