Pea, Lettuce & Celery Soup

By ltrodrigu

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons neutral oil, such as safflower or canola
• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 1 leek, cut into small pieces and rinsed in several changes of cool water
• 2 sticks celery, cut into small pieces
• 1 medium onion, finely sliced
• 4 cups boiling vegetable stock, plus more to thin, if needed
• 1 1/4 teaspoons salt, plus more to taste
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground white or black pepper, plus more to taste
• 1/2 teaspoon sugar, plus more to taste
• 2 (14-16-ounce) bags frozen peas, thawed
• Leaves from 1 head Bibb or 1 small head Boston lettuce
• 1/4 cup coarsely chopped parsley
• 1/4 cup fresh mint leaves
• 1/4 cup heavy cream or half and half
• Fried diced chorizo, pancetta, bacon or prosciutto, for garnish (optional)
• Small croutons, for garnish (optional)
• Chopped toasted hazelnuts, for garnish (optional)

Details

Servings 8
Adapted from wsj.com

Preparation

Step 1

Heat oil and butter in a heavy saucepan over medium heat. Add leeks, celery and onions, and cook until soft, about 10 minutes. Add boiling vegetable stock, salt, pepper and sugar to pan and return to boil. Cook until slightly reduced, 8 minutes more. Add peas and simmer until heated through, 2 minutes more.

Off heat, add lettuce, parsley and mint to soup. Use a blender to purée until very smooth. Adjust seasoning as needed.

Return soup to heat. Stir in cream. If too thick, stir in a little more hot stock. Ladle soup into heated bowls and serve immediately. If desired, garnish each portion with fried diced chorizo, pancetta, bacon, prosciutto, croutons and/or chopped, toasted hazelnuts.