Potage Parmentier

One of my guilty pleasures is a good food memoir. Some of my favorites include A Homemade Life, The Sharper The Knife, the Less you Cry, Trail of Crumbs, Home Cooking, Julie & Julia, Julia Child’s “My Life in France”, and A Pig in Provence.  Now that I am food blogging, I’m trying to convince Ryan that I NEED to buy/read more food memoirs – you know – for “research purposes.” I’ve pretty much gone through the selection at my local library. I’m hot on the trail for The Sweet Life in Paris,  The Gastronomy of Marriage: A Memoir of Food and Love, and I Loved, I Lost, I Made Spaghetti.

In the spirit of food blogging, I decided to make a nice pot of Potage Parmentier. Sorry for another soup post, but I thought this one was particularly fitting since it is the dish that inspires Julie Powell (author of “Julie and Julia”) to start her famous, year-long cooking project/blog on “Mastering the Art of French Cooking.” I grabbed some potato, leeks, and a nice multigrain baguette at the Farmer’s Market in Rittenhouse Square yesterday for today’s featured menu item. Ryan’s away, I am restless, and I need a little afternoon project. I love the idea of having the apartment to myself and always think I will relish the solitude, but by the 2nd day I’m usually missing him. My former single self is appalled by the mere notion of this. Don’t get me wrong, I made use of this “me time” by going through my whole closet, trying on outfits, reading my InStyle, watching some Sex and the City reruns and doing as little else as possible.

Julia Child’s Potage Parmentier (or Leek and Potato Soup)

• 4-5 medium potatoes, sliced or diced

• 3-4 large thinly sliced leeks

• 2 quarts (4 cups) of water • kosher salt to taste

• 4 T. softened butter or 4-6 T. whipping cream

After slicing the leeks, soak them in a large bowl of water for a few minutes to remove the dirt and grit. Once you have thoroughly cleaned the leeks, place them in a large pot with the potatoes, water and salt. Bring to a boil and simmer for 45 – 50 minutes, or until the vegetables are tender. **I use the immersion blender to get this soup to a nice thick consistency.

If at first you don’t succeed…

Why do I like to cook? Well, until about two years ago I didn’t. Quite frankly, I wasn’t any good at it and I had the feedback to prove it. From a botched batch of lemon bars to the most inedible tray of chicken wings you’ve ever seen in your life, my friends and family have been quite vocal in their dislike of my cooking.   Even after a lot of practice, I still make quite a few meals that are just not that great, but I learn from the process and I enjoy it. I suppose that is what matters.

If you know me, you know that I can be anxious and easily stressed. Cooking gives me an outlet for this. And when I stress over cooking, I just drink wine – preferably pinot noir.  I tend to set unrealistic expectations for myself when it comes to cooking, which is pointless since my husband will rarely criticize anything I make for him. He may criticize my cleaning,  the way I dry dishes, the method I use to pull the shades up in our living room, how I water the plants,  how I turn our computer off, etc. (Note:  these are actual complaints.) Trust me,  I could go on – honestly I could go on forever  because I am married to the most particular person since…well ironically…since my father.  While this subject alone could be put me in therapy for years, it fuels my love of cooking because:  1) it never gets boring; 2) it always allows for imperfection and 3) it consistently gives me something to be better at than Ryan.   

A few months ago we had a cook-off – Top Chef style. The ingredient: scallops. The challenge: create the best dish. True to form, Ryan was overconfident and tackled too many dishes and when things got crazed in the kitchen he just started throwing sundried pesto over everything (including Greek yogurt and kiwi). I love him dearly but it was one of the worst meals I’ve ever had. Mine was pretty good, but honestly it didn’t need to be that good to win. But to be fair, Ryan excels at making egg sandwiches. He fries up a couple of eggs, throws them on a grilled bagel, adds cheese and some mixture of butter and ketchup and mayo – which somehow results in a damn fine egg sandwich.

Ryan just asked me if I was writing something for my blog. Yes, I am and it is partially about you my sweet husband. This is about to cross my lips when he asks me if I know what tomorrow is.  My friend Patty’s birthday? Bruce Springsteen’s birthday? (no wait that is Wednesday).  As he rolls his eyes, he says “It’s the first day of Fall, Cheri” and hands me an iced sugar cookie in the shape of a squirrel. Sometimes being married is really great.