Croatian Leek Soup Food

NORTH CROATIAN CREAMY VEGETABLE SOUP

Steps:

• Finely mince onion and sauté it on butter until translucent.
• In the meantime, cut and mince all vegetables into small pieces and put into sautéed onion.
• Add all beef stock, season with salt and pepper and cook 40 minutes or until vegetables are soft.
• Blend all vegetables with blender or stick blender into creamy liquid. Add thyme and nutmeg and cook 10-15 minutes.
• Add sour cream before serving. Serve hot with croutons.

CROATIAN LEEK STEW ( PORILUK CUSPAJZ")

Steps:

• Wash the leek very thoroughly (there might be some mud between the leaves) and cut them in 1 inch pieces (also the green parts, at least nice looking one).
• Preheat the water and when it boils put the leek in it and leave it boil for one minute.
• During this operation prepare this: put lard in a pot, heat it and brown flour in lard (but not too brown).
• Add grounded paprika and just few drops of cold water to make "zafrig" (a kind of "sauce veloutè").
• Take out leek with hollow spoon, add sliced potato in small cubes and water you have cooked leek in it.
• Season with salt and pepper and cook until potato is soft (10-20 minutes).
• Serve as a side dish to steaks, sausages, dried smoked ham etc.

CROATIAN LEEK SOUP

Steps:

• Wash and cut leek into thin rounds.
• Sauté the leek in olive oil until tender and than add flour. Sauté it for 2 minutes and add water, at first little to make creamy sauce and than make soup out of it.
• Add the whole garlic clove and remove after 1 hour cooking. Season it with salt and pepper. Cook for 1 to 1, 5 hours on gentle fire.
• In the meantime cut bread into small cubes and fry it on butter until crispy.
• Crush and fry pine nuts without any fat on frying pan until they get brownish.
• Cut Swiss cheese into leaves (2 mm thin).
• Before serving put bread and pine nuts in a plate, cover with Swiss cheese. Pour the soup over bread and cheese and sprinkle with parmesan cheese.