Spanish Chorizo is a great companion to leek and potato soup. The chopped chorizo is roasted in the oven to concentrate their flavour. They are added to the top of the soup, along with their rich juices, after it has been pureed.

SERVINGS
Four main meals, six starters
PREPARATION TIME
15 minutes
COOKING TIME
30 minutes
FREEZES?
Yes, very well

INGREDIENTS
The best Spanish chorizo is from the meat counter. Ask them to slice it for you to save work.
Four medium leeks trimmed - 500 grams / 1 lb 2 oz
Two medium potatoes - 500 grams / 1 lb 2 oz
Medium onion - 1
Spanish chorizo - 150 grams / 6 oz
Stock, fresh or water and two stock cubes - 1 litre / 2 pints / 5 cups
Milk - 225 ml / ½ pint / 1¼ cups
Butter - 2 tbspns / 2½ tbspns
Olive oil - 2 tbspns
Salt and pepper - To taste

PREPARATION
Finely chop the leeks and onions.
Peel and chop the potatoes into small cubes.
Chop the sliced chorizo into smallish pieces (see picture).
If using stock cubes, dissolve them in hot water.

COOKING
1. Melt butter in a pan on a medium heat.

2. Turn the heat to low then add the leeks, onions and potatoes to the pan. Cook on the low heat for 10 minutes. Turn the ingredients twice whilst cooking.

3. Preheat the oven to 200°C (400°F/Gas 6).

4. Add the stock and milk to the pan and cook for a further 20 minutes until the potatoes are softened and cooked through.

5. Ten minutes before the soup is cooked, place the chopped chorizo on a baking tray, drizzle over the olive oil then place in the oven for the remaining ten minutes.

6. If you want a smooth soup, which we recommend for this recipe, then blend the soup in a food processor. Reheat for two minutes.

7.Serve the soup in a bowl. Remove the chorizo from the oven and sprinkle some of it over each bowl of soup. Serve immediately.

SERVE WITH?
Lots of chunky bread.