In flipping through The Best International Recipes, I was looking for a meal that appealed to my stuffed-up, cold-ridden self. Colcannon Soup (pg 86), with its butt-load of kale, potatoes, and leeks, sounded cozy and right. It appears that all the best international recipes begin with a base of onions cooked in bacon grease. All the ones I choose to cook do, at least. ha! I expect that will change once I wander away from chilly Northern European realms.
I've never had Colcannon Soup, so I can't say if this is an authentic version of it. I suspect that's going to be a problem for me throughout this book. Regardless, this soup was damn good. According to the introduction, this soup is most commonly made with cabbage instead of kale, but that kale does appear in a number of versions, so they included it as a variation. I opted for the kale, because I need the leafy greens.
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| Behold the creamy, bacony goodness. Oh yeah, there's kale in there too. |
This soup's flavor, with its base of bacon and wine and chicken stock, garlic, onions, and leeks, and topped with crumbled bacon and chives, was more complex than I assumed it would be. The heavy cream that is added at the last minute thickens the soup and makes it feel luxurious in your mouth.
Conclusion: Loved it. This would be even better if the weather were cold, but even at 95 degrees, it hit the spot. This could easily become a winter staple.
Sounds yummy! I didn't know you could make colcannon into a soup, but it actually makes perfect sense. We love the basic version which is just mashed potatoes with kale (or cabbage, but like you I prefer kale).
ReplyDeleteCreamy bacony goodness? Sounds like a winner in my book!
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