Cock-a-Leekie Soup

My father's father was born just outside of Cardiff, Wales and came to Canada when he was about 7 years old.  Since I am part Welsh, I thought it would be fun to celebrate St. David's Day.  St. David is the patron saint of Wales and March 1st, which is his feast day, is a time of great celebration in Wales.  

Leeks are the symbol of Wales and daffodils are the flower of Wales, so today we had some of each.

I couldn't find any daffodils in bloom so these ones were the best I could do - they'll open in a few days.  We also had some cock-a-leekie soup, a traditional Welsh chicken and leek soup. I know, kind of a bad name.

A lot of people don't know how to cook with leeks - even my mother emailed me for cooking instructions.  Leek are a very mild onion and taste great on their own or in soups.   You need to cut them approximately where the green part of the leaves starts, cut off the root part, slice lengthwise, and rinse carefully.

Then cut into small 1/4 to 1/2 inch slices.

I'm not sure how authentic this soup recipe is but this is what we (my Mom and I) made.

 

Cock-a-Leekie Soup (for 6 people)

Ingredients:

4 skinless, boneless chicken breasts

3 celery sticks, thinly sliced

3 medium carrots, thinly sliced

3 small potatoes, peeled and cut into small pieces

10 mushrooms, thinly sliced

3 leeks, trimmed and washed and cut into slices

salt and pepper to taste.

How to prepare:

Boil chicken in water for about 20-30 minutes (use the water for the broth).

Remove chicken from the water.

Add celery, carrots, and potato pieces to the water and boil for about 5 minutes.

Add the mushrooms and leeks and boil for about 10 minutes.

Chop chicken into bite-size pieces and add to soup.

Add salt and pepper to taste and serve with some crusty bread.

Happy St. David's Day!

Anyone else have a Welsh background?  Anyone cook with leeks?