Hearty Potato Bacon and Leek Soup

Directions

1. Trim the rind off the bacon and set aside as it will be used later. Dice the bacon and leek and sauté in a large saucepan until the leek is glossy and just softened. Scrape this mixture into a large bowl and put aside. You should not need to add any oil as the bacon fat will be plenty to stop any sticking to the saucepan. Do not rinse or wash saucepan at this stage as we want to keep the flavours for the next step.
2. Whilst the bacon and leek is sautéeing, peel and quarter the potatoes and then once the saucepan is emptied of bacon and leek, place the potatoes in the used saucepan together with the rind and stock and enough water to bring the level to just over the potatoes.The flavours from the leek and bacon will add to the flavour of the stock.
3. Bring to the boil and then turn heat down to low-med to allow the potatoes to cook to the stage where they 'mash' if pushed against the side of the saucepan with a spoon.
4. Remove the rinds and allow to cool slightly before blending the mixture with a handblender until smooth and then pour into the bowl of bacon and leek and mix until smooth.
5. Serve with a season of pepper and your favourite toasted bread!
6. Note: The above quantities are all approximate as I find that it depends on the size of your saucepan or pot. I tend to make big quantities of soup that I can freeze for lunches or quick dinners. You may find that you prefer to thin your soup down a bit more than I do. That's fine, all you need is a little hot water to get it to the consistency that you prefer.