1medium Vidalia onion or 3-4 shallots, peeled chopped
3garlic cloves roughly chopped
1small leek white part only, chopped
5large Yukon Gold potatoes, peeled & diced
3large Yukon Gold potatoes, baked*
2 ½cupsvegetable broth, more as needed
juice from ½ lemon
Kosher or sea salt & freshly ground black pepper to taste
cashew cream** to drizzle to garnishoptional
finely chopped chives for garnish
Cashew Cream
½cupraw cashewssoaked in water for at least 2 hours
½cupwater
pinchof salt
Instructions
*To bake potatoes, peel them, season with a little sea salt, and wrap in foil. Bake in the oven for 45 minutes to 1 hour until soft. Set aside until ready to use.
In a heavy-bottomed Dutch oven, heat the oil, and add the onion or shallots, garlic, and leeks with a large pinch of kosher or sea salt and sweat on medium heat (do not brown), for 5-10 minutes until soft and translucent.
Add in the raw chopped potatoes and vegetable broth (the broth should cover the potatoes by about 2 in.), bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer and cook until potatoes are soft, about 20 minutes. Add the baked potatoes and stir to combine.
Using an immersion blender, purée the soup until creamy. Be sure you have enough liquid in the soup, or else it will be gummy.
Season with lemon juice, salt, and pepper and serve drizzled with a little cashew cream and chopped chives (optional).
**To make cashew cream, purée everything in a high-speed blender until creamy. Adjust consistency with additional water if necessary
Notes
My secret trick is to add in some pre-baked potatoes, which I find adds an extra depth of flavor.You can add some cashew cream or drizzle it on top to make it pretty, but it’s not needed to achieve a rich and creamy soup.