Creamy Caramelized Leek Soup with Maple Glazed Bacon.
I don’t even want to tell you about soup right now.
I mean, it’s almost April so shouldn’t we be discussing swimsuits and popsicles and glitter eggs and all things warm weather?
Um. Yes. We should. But we’re not. Because it’s SNOWING.
Okay okay. I’m being dramatic. It snowED. Yesterday. Note the “ed” on the end. At this point I believe we are on the upswing, which will probably be followed with a downswing to toy with my seasonal emotions.
It’s fine though. I’m fine. I’ve kept busy doing important things like taking buzzfeed quizzes on which guy from sex and the city would be my perfect soulmate because that’s real life and actually matters and stuff. At one point they want you to choose a romantic comedy and I want to be all ummm do you even know me? Why do you think it’s possible for me to pick ONE? You may as well ask my favorite song next so I can just clam up and feel completely useless and overwhelmed.
For the record, I got Richard Wright – which is just downright embarrassing.
I feel like I’m eleven years old and just played MASH and received the worst possible combination of living space, life partner, child number and future car… so I say scratch that and rip out another notebook page, scribbling the game down again but this time fixing it for my own personal use.
You know?
(Most importantly as I was writing this, I pulled up MASH online and played three rounds. I once wrote an entire post about this and am glad to have rediscovered it if for nothing else than to keep me up late at night.)
All freezing temps aside, it IS a spring soup. So I guess I can’t get away with much more.
And, this soup is just plain super. Or should I say souper. Ugh. I’ll stop.
But really, it’s good. I’m a bit nutty over leeks, yet they aren’t something I grab on a weekly basis. They are like the “treat” of the onion world. Well, so are shallots, but whatever. These guys are green and cute and have swirly insides that look somewhat pretty in photos.
They also taste fantastic when caramelized with some brown sugar, pureed with a bunch of roasted garlic (dyyyyying) and topped off with some maple glazed bacon. A trifecta of flavors, if you will.
Can’t even deal.
I also like to add a drizzle of olive oil because it’s just so darn pretty in droplets. If you use the good stuff, it will add some fantastic flavor too. Oh and the color?! I’m all about pastels at the moment, so I could look at this all day. It’s so lovely and rich but light at the same time. I like it.
Creamy Caramelized Leek Soup with Maple Glazed Bacon
Ingredients
- 6 cleaned and trimmed leeks, about 4 cups, sliced
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 4 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon pepper
- 1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika
- 1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
- 2 tablespoons brown sugar
- 1 bulb roasted garlic
- 1/3 cup dry white wine
- 4 cups low-sodium chicken stock
- 2/3 cup half and half
- 2 green onions, thinly sliced
- 2 tablespoons olive oil for drizzling
maple glazed bacon
- 4 slices thick-cut bacon
- 2 tablespoons maple syrup
Instructions
- Make sure the leeks have been trimmed, rinsed thoroughly and patted as dry as they can be with a paper towel.
- Heat a large pot over medium-low heat and add the olive oil and butter. Add the leeks, salt, pepper and crushed pepper flakes and toss well to coat. Cook, stirring every few minutes, until the leeks begin to brown, about 20 to 25 minutes. Once the leeks are starting to brown, stir in the brown sugar and cook for another 10 minutes until they are super caramelized. Stir in the roasted garlic. Increase the heat slightly to medium and add the wine. Stir to combine, then cook for a few minutes until most of the wine cooks off. Pour in the stock and stir. Bring the soup to a boil, then reduce to a simmer and cook for 15 minutes.
- Turn off the heat and carefully add the entire mixture to a blender and puree until smooth. Pour the pureed soup back in the pot and heat it over low heat. Stir in the half and half, then tasted and add more salt and pepper if desired. Serve the soup with a sprinkle of green onions, a drizzle of olive oil and a handful of crushed maple bacon.
maple glazed bacon
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil and place a nonstick wire rack on top. Bake for 18 to 20 minutes, until bacon is starting to get crispy in parts and the fat is rendered. Remove the bacon from the oven and brush it on both sides with maple syrup. Bake for another 6 to 8 minutes until the bacon is crispy and dark. Remove from the oven and brush with maple syrup once more, then let cool completely. Once cooled, crushed into bits.
Did you make this recipe?
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I appreciate you so much!
P.S. can we talk about how I found the fattest leeks ever? Seriously. These had some girth. Stopping again. I know.
102 Comments on “Creamy Caramelized Leek Soup with Maple Glazed Bacon.”
Caramelized leeks and white wine, one of the best smells!
I think this soup is a lovely fusion of winter and spring; a comforting bowl of goodness with lovely spring ingredients!
I am feeling your pain, Jessica!. It snowed here all day on Tuesday! This soup looks so delicious!
Please never say girth ever again. Ok, thanks. Also–I got Smith Jerrod?! I wanted Aidan, because well yeah.
Love this soup! Leeks are probably my favorite soup ingredient, period.
This looks amazing! I think leeks and bacon are one of the best combinations out there. :) If only I could convince my boyfriend that maple and bacon go well together – he thinks I’m weird because I like dipping my bacon in syrup with breakfast.
this looks delicious! i think i just found what i’m gonna make tomorrow!
xo, cheyenne
LOVE leeks!! I am actually currently enjoying some in my omelette and they were huuuuge as well. Seriously can’t get enough of them. And this weather – what the heck!? It’s exactly the kind that makes me want to do SATC Buzzfeed quizzes. Fingers crossed spring will finally arrive soon!
Pretty sure I need to go take that quiz NOW. And then make this soup… because although there’s no snow here… it’s so damn windy and cold I may not make it another day in these conditions! Soup and quizzes for the win! With bacon, of course.
Your last sentence makes me think that Richard Wright was actually the perfect soulmate for you :) Sex + The City marathons have become a regular part of my weekends and I can’t get enough. I also can’t get enough of Leeks lately, I just tried them for the first time this year and I want to put them in/on everything. Can’t WAIT to make this soup!
ha! excellent point.
Love the leek girth comment….you dirty, dirty girl. Haha! Making this, ummmm, asap.
I always like a little drizzle of cream sherry on my leek soup. Yum. Looks like it would be good on this, too.
My goodness how I loved MASH. And yeah, I admit to totally believing that my future would involve a mansion.
I love leeks and this is getting made this weekend!!!
Where did you get the gorgeous leeks?
And… I just got an email from amazon with the release date for my preordered book!! Wheeee
my local grocery store! they were seriously thicker than 1.5 inches in diameter. crazy.
and thanks!!
These soup photos are gorgeous! Leeks are a once in awhile treat for me, too!
This soup sounds heavenly! And it’s totally acceptable because it’s bright and springy and pretty. I feel ya on the snow. So over it. Thanks also for reminding me of MASH! It was one of the best parts of being a 13-year-old girl (…or a 30-year-old…)
These photos are so beautiful!
Shut. Up.
I haven’t thought about the MASH game in years! lol. Love this, beautiful photos as well :)
Richard Wright!!! Oh no. I hate those Buzzfeed quizzes. Last week, I took the “Which Real Housewife are you?” and got Kim Richards. I was so sure I’d get Lisa Vanderpump. Haha!
This soup looks dreamy…and the pictures LOOK like spring! I keep tell you that you need to more to Texas!
In the words of Richard Wright ….
“Best,”
Bridget :)
OK. I got…..
MR. BIG!!!!
I change my stance on BuzzFeed quizzes and pronounce them the arbiters of truth. ;)
just when i thought i couldn’t love you more…. (and i’m jealous of your result).
Pretty sure I can smell this soup through my computer ha it looks ah-mazing!
I accidently pinned this twice because I was so excited about it. Actually, this entire week I have wanted to face plant into this blog. Haven’t figure it out yet but I am still trying! Which brought me to wanting to sit in your kitchen all day but you may get tired of that so I thought I should be helpful sooooooo are you looking for an assistant? Because I would gladly take up the post. I have great organizational skills, I taste test like a champ, can overanalyze any TV show to the point of insanity, and put way too much weight into the Buzzfeed quizzes even though I think they are getting completely out of hand. You just let me know :)
That pretty much sums up my life. I was doing buzzfeed yesterday, and I got Steve Brady. Can’t complain! Oh, and the soup looks perfect. I wonder if a dire need to make soup is a good reason to leave work mid-day….????
It’s not that cold in CA (don’t hate me!) but this soup still sounds like the perfect dinner to me!
Um, I got Harry. I love the guy and all, but I am Miranda to a T. I’m supposed to get Steve!
Aleksander Petrovsky… really?! lol. This soup is happening this weekend – perfect for a chilly CT Sunday! Can it be done with an immersion blender?
leeks are so versatile… We can talk spring… but its still nice to enjoy a good bowl of soup as it still snows :(
What a gorgeous color and it looks so creamy and delish! pinned
Preordered your book last week and SO EXCITED to get it! The only bummer is having to wait til September.. thank god I still have your blog to read everyday :)
I think your brussels love has worn off on me finally.. brussels sprouts breakfast hash for dinner tonight!
Yeah, it snowed here today. I’m so over this weather I don’t know what to say. Also, if this is spring, what’s summer gonna look like? Soup is my favorite food right now, so I can’t wait to try this!
This looks so yummy!!!
http://www.iriseatshealthy.blogspot.com
Ok I’ve been obsessed with taking those buzzfeed quizzes lately as well. The last one I took determined which of the Real Housewives I’m most like, I didn’t like the results so I just kept taking it until I approved of the one I got – since you know, if I had been a Jill Zarin, that meant I was really like Jill Zarin in real life.
Anyhoo, soup. This soup is SO beautiful, and actually seems perfectly fitting for these beginning days of spring – if we can call it that.
You crack me up! Now I need to google MASH and waste some time! This caramelized leek soup looks delicious! I love that you just threw this together like it was any old day! Maybe if I make this soup the cold weather will magically disappear!
You’re right, I never buy leeks on a daily basis, but feel fancier when I do! Looks delicious!
Okay you get points for the lame pun—super and souper. I love lame puns.
You are my friend now. Laughing. OMG SNOW!!!! You needed this soup.
I won’t talk about the spring weather we are having here in the Pacific NW.
You surprised me about the maple bacon—that you flavored it yourself.
I like it. That bacon can be used in many many ways.
Jessica, this soup is by far the prettiest spring soup I’ve seen in a LONNNNNG time, longer than it’s been since my skin has seen the sun. Now that’s saying something because it snowed here again this week tooo…ugh. I might be willing to push spring off a bit if it comes with this soup :)
I’m visiting my boyfriend right now in Toronto, and it’s snowing today, and almost ever other day . There’s ice all over the ground! I would be so down for this soup right now.
Wow! This looks amazing! Thinking it will be on our Sunday menu.
Ugh. It’s now snowing, but “icing” here tomorrow, whatever that means. RW is harsh. Luckily I got Aiden. I’m using my time well, too.
I got TREY.
And my MIL lives just up the street! I’m doomed.
Lovely soup. Looks like dinner tmrw, if I can justify soup at 84 degrees here in TX.
I just got the 3 largest leeks I’ve ever seen in my life yesterday!!! (from my csa) I had NO idea what I was going to do with them! Now I can’t wait to make this soup!
WOAH this is a winner! Still a wintery soup- but that would be because spring is taking it’s damn time! I am definitely pinning and trying this out!
and we ALL know it’s all about girth… ;D
so i made this soup today to take to friends with whom i had lunch. leeks are just heaven to me – the timing of your post was impeccable! this soup is delicious… and the bacon… what a perfect addition – i baked extra for snacking :D this recipe will definitely be repeated – a rarity in my household as there are simply too many recipes i want to make and not enough time!
I have a bag of frozen leeks from Trader Joe’s in the freezer. Dinner! Looks like Richard Wright for dessert. Thanks Buzzfeed. I so did not want to be Miranda. My inner skank was hoping for Samantha.
Hey, I for one eat soup all summer, so I think this is totally appropriate for spring! Especially with all those beautiful new-season leeks. Yay!
Jessica, I don’t even like to cook, but- listen to this- I’m new to your blog via a friend, and I’ve made several things!! Your writing and your photos are just so fun and energetic. Thank you for inspiring me. Cooking is still kind of “meh” but the results are super!
This looks amazing! I absolutely ADORE leeks, so I can’t wait to make this!
Question on the roasted garlic: I tend to make it only the day that I need it (by following your recipe, of course), but since it takes a while to roast, do you think I can make it in advance? Will it keep in the fridge for a day or two?
lovely soup! can anyone tell me if subbing plain greek yogurt for the half and half would work? thanks!!
So I just revisited MASH because of you and am laughing a lot – thanks!!
A) I’m dying over the bowls.
B) I’m dying over the word girth.
C) I’m dying over the soup and the fancy oil drizzle thingy.
D) I’m dying over the maple glazed bacon.
E) I’m dying over getting to see you next week.
The soup is delicious!! The only problem I had was when I was pureeing it, about half of it shot out onto my kitchen walls!! Other than that, excellent, excellent recipe. Thank you!!