Lettuce Vichyssoise
Vichyssoise is a traditional leek, potato, and cream soup that’s served cold, making it both refreshing and rich. This is my take, in which the soup’s predominant flavor comes from blanched romaine. This delicate vichyssoise is yet another example of the versatility of lettuce, and how it can be used for more than just salad. Feel free to make it the day before and store it in your refrigerator; just leave off the crème fraîche and croutons until the final moment.
Equipment
Ingrediënten
- Serves 4
- 1 tablespoon butter
- 1 shallot finely chopped
- 1 small white onion finely chopped
- 1 clove garlic finely chopped
- Salt
- 1 cup heavy whipping cream
- 1 cup whole milk
- 3 hearts romaine
- Crème fraîche for garnish
- Garlicky Herbed Croutons for garnish
- Extra-virgin olive oil for drizzling
Instructies
- In a medium pot on medium heat, melt the butter.
- Stir in the shallot, onion, garlic, and a pinch of salt.
- Cook, stirring occasionally, until the onion is soft but has no color, about 7 minutes.
- Add the cream and milk and bring to a simmer.
- Once simmering, carefully pour everything into a blender.
- Blanch the lettuce by bringing a large pot of water to a boil on high heat.
- Once boiling, add a pinch of salt.
- Use tongs to dunk one romaine heart at a time into the boiling water until it goes limp, about 30 seconds.
- Remove and set aside on a cutting board as you repeat with the remaining lettuce (don’t pat it dry; you want it to retain some water when you blend).
- Remove and discard the romaine heart’s stems.
- Add a handful of lettuce to the blender and blend on high speed for 1 minute.
- Continue with the remaining lettuce, blending for 1 minute after each addition, until you’ve added all of the romaine.
- Strain the soup through a fine-mesh strainer into a bowl to remove any leftover texture.
- Season with a healthy pinch of salt, then cover and chill in your refrigerator for at least 1 hour or up to 12 hours.
- Just before serving, divide the soup among four bowls.
- Top each with a dollop of crème fraîche, a handful of croutons, and a drizzle of olive oil.
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