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Spinach and Leek Soup with Ricotta

Autumn is here, and for me, that means time for soup.  I think soup gets a bad rap – people think about making the stuff and they immediately dismiss the idea as being too high maintenance, too much effort for a simple weeknight dinner.  I’m here to try to break that stereotype.  Soup is simple people!

This variation takes a few vegetables, some stock and some cheese and in about 20 minutes, you have a delicious and healthy dinner.  Pair it with a simple grilled provolone cheese on sourdough if you’re really hungry.  This soup serves as a great friend to a grilled cheese – much better than your monotonous canned tomato soups.

The idea of putting Ricotta cheese in the soup instead of milk or cream comes from the (huge) Silver Spoon Italian cookbook.  It worked really well, and I even added a touch of Feta too for an interesting diversity of flavors.  Next time you have a big pile of spinach in your fridge and don’t want to make another spinach salad, try this instead.  I loved the results:

Food:

• 1 big pile of Spinach – about 2 cups (see pic)
• 1 large or 2 smaller Yukon Gold (you can use Russets in a pinch) Potatoes – peeled and cubed
• 2 large Leeks – halved and chopped into half moons
• ~1 cup Ricotta Cheese (use part-skim if desired)
• 3-4 cups Chicken Stock (Use Vegetable if you want) – enough to cover the potatoes
• 1 Tsp freshly grated Lemon Zest
• Salt and Pepper to taste

Optionally:

• Add in some cubed Eggplant to the mixture
• Add in 2 Tbsp. Feta Cheese
• Add in 1 clove of Garlic to the cooking vegetables

Method:

Heat the stock over medium/high heat with a liberal amount of salt in a heavy bottomed pot like a dutch oven or cast iron skillet (taste the stock as to not over season).  Add in the potatoes, cover the pot and cook for 5 minutes.   Turn the heat down to low and add the leeks (and eggplant if using) and cook for another 5 minutes.  Add the spinach and black pepper, cover and cook over lowered heat for another 7-10 minutes, until all the vegetables are cooked through.

Transfer the mixture to a blender and blend until smooth.  Once blended well, transfer the mixture back to the pot.  Add in the Ricotta cheese, lemon zest and Feta (if using) and stir vigorously with a whisk or slotted spoon.  The Ricotta won’t totally adhere to the soup mixture, but it should lighten the soup up a bit.  Taste for seasoning, adjusting as necessary.

Serve the soup in bowls and enjoy!

Makes around 4 servings