22 reasons to love leeks. By Matt Preston.

1) Buttered leeks on crumpets with grilled cheese

Slice four cleaned and trimmed leeks finely and cook slowly in a large, covered pan with a generous knob of butter for about 20 minutes. Toss them every so often to stop them sticking. Turn on your grill in the oven, take four freshly toasted crumpets, top them with the buttered leeks and then slices of a bitey cheddar (or tasty). Smash under the grill to bubble up the cheese. The Welsh invented crumpets, you know!

2) Creamed leeks and scrambled eggs

Leeks go wonderfully with eggs, so make the buttered leeks as above but finish by cooking them down with a splash of cream and a grate of nutmeg. Serve them on toast alongside slow-cooked, creamy scrambled eggs for a wonderful breakfast.

3) Salmon and leek turnover

Make double quantities of these creamed leeks to layer under salmon in a well glazed and well sealed puff pastry case to make a baked salmon and leek turnover.

4) Leek and bacon frittata

Just fry leeks with bacon and then let them cool before folding into your eggs, cream and herbs with a good grate of parmesan and black pepper.

5) Leek and bacon pasta

The same leek and bacon combo is delicious spooned generously through egg tagliatelle for leek and bacon pasta. Finish with lots of parmesan.

6)Penne with leek, peas and parsley

If vegetarian try penne with leek, peas and parsley. Gently fry six sliced leeks in butter to soften. Deglaze the pan with a little white wine. Add a cup of good vegetable stock and reduce. Throw in a cup of frozen peas and the cooked, drained penne pasta. Finish with grated parmesan, a tiny bit of lemon zest and finely chopped fresh parsley.

7) Leek tart tatine

Slice leeks in fat, 4cm-long rounds of even height, cook on their ends slowly in butter. Flip them once and when both ends have softened, bake them covered in a sheet of puff pastry tucked in around their side to make a leek tart tatine. Turn out and garnish with goats cheese and fresh thyme leaves.

8) Braised leeks with barley and chicken thighs

Bake chicken thighs on a raft of leeks in a braising liquid of sherry and chicken stock.

9) Leeks a la grecque

Trim the leeks but don't cut off the sealed end. Microwave leeks for 3 minutes each. Cut off the sealed root ends, split them in half lengthwise and douse with vinaigrette while warm for leeks a la grecque. Eat only the tender centre leaves. PS The Germans love this dish garnished with finely julienned mint.

10) Cheesy leek bake

Cook two leeks per person in the microwave as above but for only 2 minutes. Trim the root end and using scissors cut off the tough outer layers. Place the tender cooked centres in a baking dish and top with a blanket made from mixing an egg with 150g of goats cheese, 60g of grated parmesan and 100g of Greek yoghurt. Cook in a 170C oven for 35 minutes or until the top is golden for a cheesy leek bake. This always reminds me of the ham-wrapped leeks baked in cheese sauce that my mum used to make us as kids. These were great with boiled spuds.

11) Greek grilled leeks

For Greek grilled leeks trim leeks, remove tough outer leaves, split in half lengthwise and rinse to clean. Dry, rub with olive oil and chargrill for 4 minutes on each side. Serve in a pile dressed with good olive oil, crumbled feta and loads of fresh dill.

12) Classic leeks and potato soup

Fancy it up with a garnish of a little blue cheese or, even better, a couple of tempura-battered oysters so you can call it "oyster vichyssoise".

13) Cock-a-leekie soup

There are lots of other venerable soups. Scottish cock-a-leekie soup dates back to 1598 and was one of the two choices of soup at lunch on the Titanic the day it sank. It's a brothy combination of chicken legs, leeks and barley that is garnished with prunes.

14) Cawl

In Wales, leeks form the basis for their national dish, cawl, along with boiled lamb (shanks or neck) and potatoes.

15) Kokoutti

For a more exotic leek soup try kokoutti. This is thick and hearty leek and yoghurt soup and comes from Afghanistan, a country that loves leeks almost as much as Wales. If you've never had bolani, Afghani flatbread, stuffed with leeks, then you have a treat in store!

16) Potato and leek gratin

Make a potato and leek gratin by frying up three sliced leeks with six diced slices of prosciutto. Layer this alternatively between layers of thin potato slices. Start with a potato layer in a well-buttered baking dish; you'll need about 400g of potatoes. Top with a cup of grated cheese. Pour over a beaten mixture of milk, cream and crushed garlic. Bake in a 160C oven for 50 minutes or until the potato can be pierced easily with a wooden skewer.

17) Chicken and leek pie

Throw in tarragon or a little sage to make a difference from the usual thyme in the pie.

18) Leek and chicken filo parcels

Or change this up and make leek and chicken filo parcels.

19) Grilled pork chops with a creamy leek, dijon and tarragon sauce

I love roast leeks with my pork but equally delicious is to serve grilled pork chops with a creamy leek, dijon and tarragon sauce. This sauce is basically the creamed leeks above cooked down with the mustard, fresh tarragon and a little more cream. Just remember to save a third of the tarragon to add to the cooked sauce just before serving.

20) Pork and leeks cooked in milk

Cooking pork slowly in milk is an old Italian tradition, but throw in leeks for their delicate oniony flavour and delicious creaminess that really enhance the dish.

21) Leek green risotto

Make a standard risotto but at the end of the cook stir in a cooked-out puree of the clean and tenderer leek greens along with the butter and parmesan. While the risotto is cooking, fry rounds of white part of the leeks quite hard in a fry pan so the edges on both faces catch and burn slightly. Use these as a garnish.

22) Leek and chickpea fritters

Try leek and chickpea fritters, a recipe from one of my great culinary inspirations, Michelle Southan. These feature blanched leeks and is just one of 760 free leek recipes - including full versions of many of the dishes above - available on www.taste.com.au.

Source

Taste.com.au — July 2016

Author

Matt Preston