Recipe adapted from Simply Recipes because after I purchased my kale and cabbage, Elise posted her very authentic colcannon, which gave me no reason to make any other.

Today, the sun is shining. The icicles that adorned my house have all melted. The snow that covered my backyard? Well, it’s still there, but the forecast says it won’t be there forever, which is how I felt about it last week at this time. Yet the nights still dip below freezing, and I find myself curled up under an afghan my mom crocheted 13 years ago. To chase out the last days of winter, comfort food seems appropriate. Bring on the potatoes, the cream, the oven and the leeks. Don’t forget the leeks.

Start by thinly slicing about two and a half pounds of rinsed and scrubbed Yukon Gold potatoes. Don’t bother removing the skin. It’s good for texture.

And then move to the leeks. Clean them as well, submerging them in water and then rinsing. I chose to slice mine into little disks. If you don’t want the loops in the final dish, you could slice them in half first and then slice into half moons.

Grab your favorite casserole dish and grease the bottom and up the sides. Start by layering on the potatoes.

Then add a layer of leeks.

And a pinch of kosher salt sprinkled all around.

And crack a bit of pepper in there two.

And continue on with the layers.

When you get to the top, add a bit more salt and pepper for good measure.

In a separate container or measuring cup, measure out 1/4 cup of sherry. If you’re not into cooking with alcohol, substitute chicken broth instead, or go with a full two cups of cream.

Then add 1-3/4 cups of cream. (Don’t judge. This is comfort food, remember?)

Um…so I added garlic here. Really, you shouldn’t. Instead, mix it in with the leeks before you layer them in the casserole dish. This will prevent the garlic from wanting to all pour out in one big clump.

And a bit of nutmeg.

Then mix it all together.

Pour the cream mixture over the potato and leek layers and into the oven it goes at 350° F.

When I first started making gratins I just topped them with cheese and tossed them into a hotter oven, pulling them out 40 minutes later. Then this fall I saw the “crust break” method on Todd and Diane’s blog, White On Rice Couple. I abandoned the cheese and tried this instead, and I’ve been thrilled with the results: even creaminess throughout the gratin, light browning on top. So, after 20 minutes in the oven, gently push the potatoes back down under the cream.

Do this again at 40 minutes in (20 minutes later).

Finally, one more time at an hour cooking time.

Continue cooking for another 20 to 30 minutes until the top is evenly browned and the potatoes soft. Let it sit for 15 to 20 before serving.

It makes the perfect dish for a late-winter meal, perhaps accompanied with a scallion and lime butter brick chicken and green beans here or whatever your heart desires.

Tip: Make this in individual gratin dishes and bake for 25-30 minutes with one crust break around 15 minutes. Just as delicious and on the table in less than half the time.

My appetite changes with the season. In the winter I appreciate things that warm you up and keep you warm. Like soup. In the summer, soup takes a back seat to pasta salads, potato salads, slaws, grilled meats and fresh fruit. A warm cup of soup on a winter day makes the transition from morning coffee to lunchtime that much easier. Yes. I use coffee to keep warm. Sometimes tea too.

There is something about a well-balanced soup that makes me smile on the inside. Over the years I’ve learned the importance of making my own soup. The ability to control the seasonings, the amount of salt and to add fresh vegetables makes each and every drop worth it in my book. It doesn’t hurt that it fills the house with wafts of its savory goodness as it simmers away the afternoon.

I hadn’t attempted a potato leek soup before now, mostly due to the fact that I don’t appreciate soup recipes that call for adding chicken stock or broth when there is no chicken in the soup. I’m big on making it from scratch, and adding chicken where there is no chicken or beef where there is no beef just doesn’t make sense to me. Perhaps it’s the former vegetarian in me screaming to be let out. Plus, my freezer stash of frozen stocks and broths is gone. We haven’t had a whole chicken in quite a while. I should add that to this week’s menu. When I saw a recipe for potato leek soup on Food Woolf that started with nothing but leeks and water, I was instantly sold, with some tweaking, of course. I can never leave a recipe alone.

So, um, naturally, start by chopping three leeks. You could slice the stalk in half first to make moon shapes, but I find the circles to be appealing and, well, fun.

In a large stockpot over medium heat add a bit of olive oil. When it’s nice and hot, add the leeks.

Sauté for ten minutes until they are soft and sweaty.

And then add two cloves of garlic for good measure and sauté for 30 more seconds.

Pour in two quarts of agua.

Add in the green tops of the leeks to give it even more flavor. We’ll remove them later. Bring it to a boil and then reduce the heat to a simmer.

After 30 minutes, remove the long green tops of the leeks, but don’t discard yet.

You could make a bouquet garni with the leek tops before they are simmered, but I didn’t have any issue using them post-simmer. In fact, I think they were easier to stuff full of thyme, peppercorns and bay leaves.

Secure the bouquet garni with some kitchen twine and toss it right into your simmering leeks.

Next to come to the party will be one and a half pounds of potatoes, the gold variety, peeled and diced. Add those to the pot as well

And now add a bit of white wine. I went with a pinot grigio because, well, we’d opened the bottle the night before and hadn’t finished it. All the more reason to cook with it.

And then continue to simmer until the potatoes are tender.

It took me about 45 minutes before I was really satisfied with my potato texture.

Find your friend, Mr. Heavy Whipping Cream. You really don’t need to add him, but why not? Okay. If you want, no cream. Go completely vegan and omit entirely, or you could try adding a bit of milk if you’re afraid of the extra calories and fat. I, obviously, am not. Bring on the cream.

And at this point you’re ready to season with a bit of salt and white pepper and hit the blender or the food processor.

Return to the stockpot and heat to desired temperature or store in a heat-proof container in the fridge or freezer until ready to heat and serve. When you’re done, you’ll have a thick and creamy soup, sure to warm you from the inside out.

And keep you warm as you wait for winter to turn to spring and spring to turn to summer.

I have had these potatoes around for a while. They are screaming to be used.


About this many. Just cut off those bad parts. We don’t need them.


Now, dice them up. This will significantly reduce their cooking time, and if it’s nice out, you don’t want a big pot of boiling water on for longer than it has to be.


Take your pile of potato chunks and add it to…


…a pot of boiling water.


I am using one of these lovely egg sandwich toasters to hard boil my eggs. They are fantastic for breakfast and for easy hard boiled eggs as well.


Then comes the bacon. I have a preferred method of cooking bacon that involves the oven. You could also do it in the microwave or in a frying pan. I do not have a cool microwave bacon plate, so this is the way I’m going. It involves this lovely sheet pan covered in a sheet of parchment paper. This will make clean-up extremely easy.


Lay your bacon out and preheat your oven to 425º. Then stick it in there and forget about it for a good 12-15 minutes.


In the meantime, check on your potatoes. You want them to be soft when cut with a fork, but you don’t want to overcook them or you’ll end up with potato mush. This is after 16 minutes in the boiling water.


Immediately dump your boiled potatoes into a strainer and rinse with cold water to help them cool off. I then place them in a bowl and stick them into the fridge while I chop up the rest of the ingredients.


The rest of those ingredients happen to be:

flat-leaf parsley.


green onions

and those hard boiled eggs from earlier.


Pull your bacon out. I like to drain mine on a paper towel as it cools. It will crisp up and be perfect for crumbling.


Get your cooling potatoes out and add all your diced items.


For the dressing, grab some of this. You could go with other varieties, but the key here is to get a nice, thick ranch dressing. None of that soupy stuff. You actually have to scoop this out of the jar.


Plop it on and mix it up, add salt and pepper generously as you deem necessary.


Then you eat it. With whatever you’re cooking in the backyard. Brats, hamburgers, steaks, a portabella mushroom burger, grilled asparagus.