The Leek Shall Inherit the Earth: Three Delicious
Winter Recipes
And why not? It packs all the
flavor of an onion, with enough subtlety and nuance to carry a dish as the main
ingredient. Here are recipes for leeks with yogurt and dill, a Belgian leek
soup laced with beer and creamed leeks topped with little feta pies
By Charlotte Druckman in the Wall Street Journal
I KEEP A RUNNING list of cookbooks I’d like to see written. It includes one
from chef Rita Sodi dedicated solely to lasagna. Every time she puts a new
version on the menu at her Greenwich Village restaurant I Sodi, I swear it’s
better than the last. First came her Bolognese, then the artichoke, and the
chestnut. But the one that messed with my head was the leek lasagna. I never
would have guessed the wallflower of the allium family could hold its own as it
did, and so beautifully, vying for attention with the béchamel and sheets of
pasta.
Recipes
More than the other members of its
genus—onions, shallots, garlic, chives and scallions—leeks have a vegetal
quality. They’re larger than the rest, and milder; they warrant billing as a
featured ingredient, not just a flavoring agent. They have the umami attributed
to their cousin the onion, but their grassy sweetness and acidity set them
apart. Their reputation has been tarnished by complaints of their being full of
dirt and hard to clean. Yes, there is grit encased in their layers, but once
you trim the fibrous dark-green stalk from the core and split the leek
lengthwise, it’s easily rinsed under cold running water.
Aside from the usual
applications—the potato-heavy Vichyssoise and chicken-based cock-a-leekie
soups, or French leeks vinaigrette—I hadn’t given much time to leeks. Ms.
Sodi’s lasagna switched on the light bulb. A few blocks from I Sodi at Via
Carota, the restaurant she recently opened with her girlfriend, chef Jody Williams,
there they were again, chilled, with pickled shallots and shavings of salty
bottarga on top.
I recalled, too, a long history of
leek use in Greece, so I reached out to Maria Elia, author of “Smashing
Plates,” a new cookbook that provides a refreshing, creative and modern
perspective on that country’s cuisine. She shared her take on Greek prasopita,
a savory pie filled with leeks and
feta. Ms. Elia chars the leeks on a
griddle, then creams them like you would spinach, to make a bed for pan-fried
parcels of filo-wrapped feta drizzled with honey.
Closer to home, I tapped the four
Manhattan friends— Courtney Allison, Tina Carr, Caroline Laskow and Julie
Peacock —who authored “The Soup Club Cookbook,” a chronicle of their monthly
meal-sharing scheme. They offered a soul-warmer that might remind you of the
French-onion classic, but has Belgian roots. Though enhanced by a potent beef
broth, beer and Parmesan cheese, it’s as intense an expression of leek flavor
as any I’ve tasted.
Finally, in Diana Henry ’s “A Change
of Appetite,” I discovered a Middle Eastern approach that called for lots of garlic, cooling yogurt and the tart
spice sumac. “Perhaps it’s because I’m Irish,” Ms. Henry responded when prodded
for more leeky wisdom. “We were brought up to make the most of these good
Northern vegetables.” And so she does. She recommends braising them in olive
oil with ginger, cumin, saffron and raisins, or putting them in a quiche
flavored with sharp, grainy mustard. She has so many ideas, in fact, I think
she should write a whole cookbook on the subject.
Recipe 1 (Middle Eastern Leeks With Yogurt, Dill and Sumac):
Total Time: 25 minutes Serves: 4
- 6 leeks, trimmed, outer leaves discarded and light green and white parts cut into 1½-inch pieces and rinsed in a colander
- Juice from ½ small lemon
- ⅓ cup extra-virgin olive oil
- ¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- ⅜ teaspoon salt
- ⅓ cup Greek yogurt
- 2 garlic cloves crushed with a pinch of kosher salt to form a paste
- 1 tablespoon chopped dill leaves
- 2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
- ⅛ teaspoon ground sumac
1. Place a steamer basket or colander in a large lidded pot
filled partway with water. (Make sure water doesn’t touch bottom of steamer.)
Bring water to a boil over medium-high heat. Place leeks in colander, cover and
steam until completely tender, 6-8 minutes.
2. Transfer steamed leeks to a clean dish towel and gently pat
dry. Immediately place leeks in a bowl and, while hot, stir in lemon juice and
half of olive oil. Season with pepper and ⅛ teaspoon salt.
3.
In another bowl, whisk yogurt, garlic, remaining oil, dill, mustard and
remaining salt and pepper until combined. If desired, thin sauce by stirring in
water, milk or buttermilk.
4.
To serve, drizzle sauce over leeks. Garnish with sumac.
—Adapted from “A Change of
Appetite” by Diana Henry
Recipe 2 (Creamed Charred Leeks With Filo Feta Parcels)
Total Time: 1¼ hours Serves: 4 as an appetizer or light lunch
For the leeks:
- 2 leeks, light-green/white parts cut in half lengthwise, keeping root intact to prevent them from falling apart, rinsed
- 1½ tablespoons olive oil
- 3 scallions, thinly sliced
- 1 garlic clove, finely chopped
- 1⅔ cups heavy cream
- 2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh dill
- 2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh mint
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
For the filo parcels:
- 4 sheets frozen filo pastry, thawed
- 8 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
- 4 (2½-inch square, ¼-inch thick) pieces feta cheese
- 1 tablespoon thyme leaves (optional)
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 tablespoon honey
- 1 tablespoon toasted sesame seeds
1. Make creamed leeks: Preheat a griddle or cast-iron pan over
high heat. Drizzle leeks with ½ tablespoon oil. Place leeks on hot griddle and
cook, flipping occasionally, until slightly charred, about 7 minutes. Remove
leeks from heat and let cool. Cut cooled leeks into 1-inch lengths, discarding
roots.
2.
Heat 1 tablespoon oil in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Once hot, add
scallions and garlic, and cook until tender, 3-5 minutes. Stir in cream and
leeks until combined. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer until leeks are
tender, cream has reduced by ⅔ and consistency is similar to creamed spinach,
30-35 minutes. Stir in herbs and season with salt and pepper. Turn heat off and
leave pan on stove, covered, to keep warm.
3.
Make filo feta parcels: Lay thawed filo dough sheets in a stack on a dry work
surface. Remove one sheet of dough and lay flat on surface. Cover remaining
stack of filo dough with a layer of plastic wrap, then a damp towel. Working
quickly, brush sheet of filo with melted better, then fold in half crosswise
from bottom to top. Brush top layer again with melted better. Place 1 feta
square at left end of filo, about 2 inches from edge of dough. Sprinkle feta
with thyme leaves, if using. Fold left short end of filo over feta, then fold
two long edges over top of feta. Roll filo-feta packet from left to right to
form a neat parcel. Brush surface with melted butter. Repeat with remaining filo
and feta.
4.
Heat oil in a large nonstick pan over medium heat. Once hot, fry feta-filo
parcels until just golden, 2-3 minutes per side.
5.
To serve, place parcels on top of creamed leaks, drizzle with honey and
sprinkle with sesame seeds. Serve immediately with a glass of ouzo!
—Adapted from Maria Elia
Recipe 3: (Leek Soup)
Active Time: 1 hour Total Time: 2 hours Serves: 2 as a main
dish, 4 as an appetizer
- ¾ tablespoon olive oil
- ¾ tablespoon unsalted butter
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 5 leeks, trimmed, cut in half lengthwise, white and light green parts thinly sliced and rinsed in a colander
- 2½ cloves garlic, minced
- ¼ cup beer
- 1¼ carrots, diced
- 1 celery stalk, diced
- ½ red bell pepper, cored, seeded and finely chopped
- 1 bay leaf
- 1 small sprig each of parsley, sage and thyme, tied with kitchen twine
- 1½ quarts beef or vegetable broth
- ¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- ½ cup grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese, plus 1 (2- to 3-inch) piece Parmigiano-Reggiano rind
1. Heat oil and butter in a large lidded pot over medium-high
heat. Once butter is melted, decrease heat to medium, add ⅛ teaspoon salt and
leeks, stirring to coat. Cover and cook until soft and starting to turn
translucent, about 10 minutes. Remove lid and sauté, stirring occasionally,
until leeks begin to caramelize, 5-10 minutes more.
2.
Add garlic and beer to pot, stirring until alcohol evaporates, about 1 minute.
Add carrots, celery, bell peppers, bay leaf, ⅛ teaspoon salt and bundle of
herbs. Add broth and bring to a boil.
3.
Decrease heat to medium-low and simmer to allow flavors to meld, 40 minutes.
Remove herb bundle and bay leaf from pot and discard. Season with pepper and
remaining salt. (Soup can be refrigerated up to 4 days or frozen up to 3
months. When ready to serve, bring to room temperature and proceed with step
4.)
4.
Add cheese rind and simmer at least 10 minutes. Remove rind and ladle soup into
bowls. Garnish with grated cheese.
—Adapted from “The Soup Club
Cookbook” by Courtney Allison, Tina Carr, Caroline Laskow and Julie Peacock
Last, here is a wiki link on
leeks: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leek
And is one link on the
purported health qualities of eating leeks:
http://www.healthyfoodcorner.com/13-properties-of-leek-which-are-beneficial-for-the-human-body/
Of course there are many
other ways to cook or prepare leeks, too.
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