Cheese Leek Mushroom Potato Soup

I don't mean to give this recipe a long name, but that is what the main ingredients are.

Being so picky with the store-bought' choices, I always love making my own broth from scratch. Yes! It means, boil the water with vegetables, shittake mushroom and herbs. I sometimes add shrimp skins in. In another word, you can make from any leftover fresh veggies and carcass.

I saw potatoes in my pantry and leeks, mushroom, provolone cheese, cilantro in the fridge, I was tempting to make a western style soup. I guess :)

The soup was served with toasted spelt bread. What is spelt? Spelt is a species of wheat that has been grown since 5000 BC. Spelt, emmer and eincorn are considered to be "ancient" wheat species, since there has been very little breeding of these crops. Some people with wheat allergy or wheat intolerance can tolerate spelt. Spelt does however contain gluten, and people with gluten allergies (celiac disease) are likely to be allergic to spelt, similar to wheat and other gluten grains.

Hey! Did I mention this one for my submission to the MFM2 November 2009 - World Cuisine? This November event is hosted by Rurie. Thanks Rurie for volunteering to do this.

Cheese, Leek, Mushroom Potato Soup
recipe by me

Ingredients:
2 dried bay leaves
2 sprigs fresh rosemary
2 tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp unsalted butter
1 stalk celery, cut into 1/2 cm diced
4 leeks, white parts only, washed well, thinly sliced
2 shallots, diced
3 cloves garlic, minced
750 g Yukon gold potatoes, peeled and cut into -inch pieces
250 g white/button mushrooms, chopped
300 g provolone cheese
5 cups Homemade Vegetable/Chicken stock
sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

Directions:
1. Make a bouquet garni: first wrap bay leaves, and rosemary in a piece of cheesecloth. Tie with a piece of kitchen twine, and set aside.

2. Heat olive oil and butter in a medium stockpot. Add celery, leeks, shallots, and garlic; cook on medium-low heat until very soft, about 45 minutes, stirring only occasionally. Do not brown.

3. Add mushroom, potatoes, stock, and reserved bouquet garni.

4. Bring mixture to a boil, and then reduce to a gentle simmer. Cook until potatoes are very tender, about 40 minutes.

5. Remove bouquet garni, and discard.

6. Add cheese and stir with a hand blender, until all smooth.

7. Season with salt and pepper. Serve hot with bread.