Fennel-leek soup

Spring is in full swing, which means leeks, potatoes, and fennel are in season. Last week's CSA treasure trove of a box had both leeks and feathery, liquoricy fennel. Coupled with the potatoes my grandmother gave us from her garden, we had the makings of a good pot of soup.

A chef friend lent us her soup book filled with all sorts of fun, easy recipes to try. We modified its fennel-leek soup recipe to be vegetarian and came up with this.
To make it into vichyssoise, add about 1/4 to 1/2 cup cream or sour cream before pureeing it. Alternatively, you can stir in some milk or cream in each bowl.

Fennel-leek soup

1-3T olive oil
4 cloves garlic, minced
3 leeks, rinsed and sliced (white part only)
1 bulb fennel, rinsed and chopped (white part only; reserve feathery leaves for garnish)
2 medium potatoes, diced
4 cups vegetable stock
thyme, marjoram, oregano, salt and pepper to taste

In a pot, heat 1-3T olive oil until fragrant.
Add garlic, leeks, and fennel, and sweat over low heat for about 15 minutes or until soft.
Add stock and potatoes. Bring to a boil, then simmer for 15 minutes or until the potatoes are soft. Season with herbs, salt and pepper.
After potatoes are done, blend or puree soup until smooth. If you want it to be really smooth, push the pureed soup through a fine mesh strainer.

Serve hot. Garnish with fennel leaves. Serves 2-6, depending on serving size.