Potato Leek Soup

Ah I fell in love with this soup all over again this weekend. It's been awhile since I made it and now that I found a new sausage that makes everything taste good, this is a winter day recipe that's hard to beat.

1 package of Gautney 40% lower fat sausage meat without the casings
3-4 leeks sliced without the green tops (first time I made this I didn't know you weren't supposed to use the dark green tops of leeks)
4 potatoes, thickly chopped
1 onion chopped
1/2 tsp. rubbed sage
1/4 tsp. ground thyme
salt and pepper to taste
1 quart of chicken stock
a few cups of milk to make the soup creamy
2-3 Tbs. flour

Brown the sausage in a frying pan and drain the fat. Add to the ol' Crock-pot with all the rest of the ingredients except the milk and flour. Cook for abut5-6 hours on low or until the potatoes are tender. Turn the Crock Pot to high. In a small bowl combine the flour with a few Tbs. of the soup liquid, adding a Tbs. at a time until the mixture forms a paste. Then add to the rest of the soup, blending until smooth. Add the milk and heat until ready to serve.

I used this recipe, the promise of some bread and butter pudding and a hot bath with story time to lure Paul to go on a run with me on Sunday afternoon. It worked, and he was amazing- completing a half hour of running with me with hardly a complaint once I got him out the door. And it was freezing outside. I carried out my promises too, but forgot to make the bread and butter pudding as we got saddled into helping a neighbor bring her treadmill in from the garage.

Sunday was a perfect day as I took the day off after church from studying (back to getting ready for the Professional Geologist exam on March 6th), had some good quality time with Paul and it was really relaxing. Today I'm back into Hendersonville for some groundwater sampling and although the work is tough, it's good to see the familiar faces.