Watercress and Buttermilk Vichyssoise
The prep and cook time do not include time to chill the soup in the refrigerator. Recipe makes 4 ½ cups.
Prep Time20 minutes mins
Cook Time25 minutes mins
Total Time45 minutes mins
Course: Soup
Cuisine: French
Keyword: chilled soup, cucumber soup with watercress, soup
Servings: 4
Calories: 239.8kcal
Author: Susan Pridmore
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 1 cup finely diced sweet onion
- ½ cup thinly sliced leeks – white and very very light green parts only
- 2 cups thinly sliced Yukon potatoes
- 1 teaspoon chopped garlic
- 2 cups vegetarian broth
- 3 bunches watercress leaves and stems chopped (about 6 cups, chopped)
- 1 cup buttermilk
- 1 ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- ½ teaspoon white pepper
- 2 tablespoons mascarpone cheese
- pinch kosher salt
- ½ teaspoon lime juice or to taste
Melt the butter in a heavy bottomed pot over medium heat - I use my Le Creuset for this. Add the onion and leeks and reduce the heat to medium-low. Put a lid on the pot and cook the onions and leeks until soft - about 15 minutes. At this level of heat, it's more sweating than sautéing - be careful not to brown!
Add the potatoes and garlic. Replace the lid to the pot and cook for another 5 minutes.
Add the broth and watercress, and bring to barely a simmer. Cook for 5 minutes, and pour the soup into a blender. I use my Ninja blender for this. Purée the soup and pass through a food mill if desired. The food mill will ensure that any stems remaining are removed.
Stir in the buttermilk, salt and pepper. The soup may taste under salted, but when chilled it will be fine. Chill for a few hours or ideally overnight before serving.
Whip together the mascarpone cheese, salt and lime juice with a small whisk or fork. Drop a ½ teaspoon dollop of cheese on each soup shooter.
Calories: 239.8kcal | Carbohydrates: 30.3g | Protein: 5.5g | Fat: 11.2g | Saturated Fat: 6.9g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.4g | Monounsaturated Fat: 2g | Trans Fat: 0.2g | Cholesterol: 29.1mg | Sodium: 1422.9mg | Potassium: 654.9mg | Fiber: 3.2g | Sugar: 7.3g | Vitamin A: 841.7IU | Vitamin C: 27.4mg | Calcium: 113.5mg | Iron: 1.3mg