It feels more than a little odd to bring this four-year-old veteran column to a close with a handful of leeks. Then again, ending on an allium is a good way to go: it’s the veg that’s always there, the one most dishes start with, and the one more than a few finish off with (I’ll top anything with chopped chives).
And of all the alliums, the leek is perhaps the richest in flavour potential, combining the melting sweetness of the onion with the green pungency of the garlic plant.
You rose to the leek challenge with as much gusto as ever, your recipes this week showing off the considerable culinary nous I’ve come to expect from the Guardian’s preeminent home cook posse. You’ve done your kitchens proud, and we’re all the richer for your efforts. We know now to time the egg-beating in our cake making (because less than eight minutes won’t cut it), to zest a lemon for bircher muesli and – counterintuitively – to boil any tofu we intend to drain. Our pilafs will forever be garnished with candied clementine peel, and our cheese straws bolstered with butternut squash. Most of all, I’ll stand up straighter in my apron, keep my counter cleaner and always wash up as I go – that’s what doing half a dozen recipes in a day really teaches you to do. And believe me: that is a legacy you can all be proud of. Indeed, it’s one to wear a leek on one’s helmet for, so to speak.
The winning recipe: Leek and sage croustade (pictured above)
Claire Mazer serves this with roast potatoes. I added some cranberry sauce – and oh my! What a beauty of a Sunday lunch (plus next-day packed lunch and midnight snack on day three) this made. The leeks are silken with butter and sage, the crust deeply aromatic and textured ... it’s as rich and festive a centrepiece as any roast.
Serves 4
110g fresh breadcrumbs
110g nuts, chopped
1 garlic clove, crushed
1 tsp basil
1 tsp chopped rosemary
1 tsp oregano
50g butter
110g strong cheddar, grated
For the sauce
50g butter
4 leeks, washed and finely chopped
2 tbsp chopped sage
1 small tub creme fraiche
Salt and black pepper
1 Preheat the oven to 180C/350F/gas mark 4. Mix the breadcrumbs, nuts, garlic and herbs together in a bowl. Rub in the butter, then stir in the cheese. Press the mixture firmly into the base of an 20cm flan dish. Bake for 20 minutes until golden.
2 For the sauce, melt the butter in a frying pan and fry the leeks for about 10 minutes until soft. Add the sage and seasoning. Finally, add the creme fraiche until thick and bubbling.
3 Spread the leek sauce over the cooked croustade. Bake for a further 20 minutes. Serve.
Leek and yellow pea soup
A faultless demo of the stealth capabilities of the leek – like a secret agent, its role here is vital yet undetectable. The slab of cured pork Timothy Duffy uses goes some way to explaining the allium’s behind-the-scenes role – not that anyone who had a bowlful was complaining.
Serves 4-6
500g dried yellow whole peas (or use split peas for a thicker soup)
2 tbsp olive oil
2-3 leeks, trimmed, halved and sliced
2 carrots, peeled and diced
2 celery stalks, diced
1 white or yellow onion, diced
2 tsp salt
Black pepper, to taste
½ tsp thyme
1.5 litres water or chicken stock
250g prosciutto (a whole end piece or chopped), smoky bacon, or pancetta
A splash of sherry
1 Soak the dried yellow peas overnight or for 1-2 hours in hot water then rinse. Add 2 tbsp olive oil to a Dutch oven or soup pot then saute the leeks, carrots, celery and onion for 5 minutes on a moderate heat until softened.
2 Add the salt, pepper, thyme, water (or stock), prosciutto (or bacon or pancetta), a splash of sherry, and the pre-soaked peas. Simmer for 1-2 hours until the peas are soft. If using a prosciutto end, remove this from soup and dice into small cubes. Return the cubes to the soup, check for seasoning, and serve with bread and sherry.
Savoury bread pudding
I love the idea of a savoury pud, and found ColonialCravings’s optional ham actually to be a vital component: the more savoury this is, the better. Leeks, it appears, work wonders with cured meats.
Serves 2-4
1 tbsp butter
A 15cm length of baguette, cut into 1cm-thick slices
1 large leek, trimmed and thinly sliced
1 small red pepper, thinly sliced
100ml milk
3 eggs
Salt and black pepper
1 tbsp mascarpone (optional)
75ml single cream
3 slices of serrano ham or similar (optional)
3 tbsp grated cheese
1 Set the oven to 180C/350F/gas mark 4. Melt the butter in a frying pan, brush a little around your baking dish, then brush some on to the sliced bread (on one side only). Use what’s left to gently sautee the leeks until they start to brown a little. Add the peppers and cook for 2-3 minutes more.
2 Beat the milk, eggs and seasoning together, then beat in the mascarpone if using. Don’t worry if it isn’t totally blended. Stir in the leeks and peppers, then pour it all into the baking dish.
3 Arrange the bread and ham (if using) in the dish, pushing them down into the custard so that they soak it up nicely. Sprinkle with cheese, then bake for 30-40 minutes, until the eggs have set and the top is deliciously golden.
Leek, butter bean and wensleydale crumble
Another successfully savoury take on a trusted sweet. Mandy Mazliah’s crumble topping was a little on the dry side for my liking, but rubbing in some butter can easily fix that.
Serves 4-6
30g butter
2 large leeks, trimmed and sliced
2 medium potatoes, peeled and cut into small dice
1 tsp dried sage
1 x 400g tin of butter beans, drained
A small handful of fresh parsley, finely chopped
200ml vegetable stock
50g wensleydale cheese
For the crumble
100g white breadcrumbs
50g wensleydale cheese, grated
40g hazelnuts, chopped
40g oats
1 Set the oven to 180C/350F/gas mark 4. Warm the butter over a medium heat in a large, heavy-based saucepan. If you use one that you can also put in the oven then you can do the whole lot in the same pan.
2 Add the leeks. Fry for 1-2 minutes, then reduce the heat to low, cover and cook for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally, until they begin to soften. Stir in the potatoes, cover and cook for 10 minutes. Stir occasionally.
3 When the potatoes are just soft, stir through the sage, beans, parsley and vegetable stock. Bring to the boil and continue to cook for 2 minutes. Remove from the heat and crumble or grate over the wensleydale.
4 Mix together all the ingredients in a bowl then pour this on top of the leek mixture in the dish.
5 Bake in the centre of the oven for 30-35 minutes, or until the top browns. Serve with seasoned greek yoghurt, a squeeze of lemon juice and bitter salad leaves.
Spicy leek fritters
Frichens’s fritters are this week’s maverick: light and fragrant with the chilli, the spring onions and aromatics. Serve with hot sauce or a dab of sriracha mayo.
Makes 12
3 large leeks, washed and trimmed
4 garlic scapes chopped into 5mm pieces (substitute with garlic scapes chopped into 5mm pieces or 4 green spring onion tops and 2 garlic cloves, minced together
3 small green chillies, deseeded and finely chopped
Zest of ½ a lemon
4 tbsp finely chopped coriander
A small pinch of turmeric
½ tsp ground coriander
30g plain flour
1 tsp baking powder
1 egg
Salt and black pepper
2 tbsp oil
1 Preheat the oven to 120C/250F/gas low. Cut the leeks in half lengthways and wash out any grit. Chop into 2cm slices. Blanch the leeks for 3 minutes in boiling water, drain, then refresh in cold water and drain again. Put them into a cheesecloth, or a clean j-cloth or tea towel, and squeeze out as much of the water as you can. Put in a large bowl with the prepared scapes/spring onions/garlic, chilli, lemon zest and fresh coriander.
2 Put the turmeric, ground coriander, flour and baking powder in another small bowl and mix together. Add the dry ingredients to the leeks and stir until all the vegetables are finely coated.
3 Beat the egg and add to the bowl. Stir to combine. Season generously with salt and a little pepper, to taste.
4 Heat a large frying pan over a medium-high heat. When hot, add half the oil. Add 4 tablespoonfuls of the mixture – or as many as you can fit comfortably – into the pan. They’ll need about 3 minutes on each side. When brown and crispy, transfer on to kitchen paper, then put on a tray in the oven while you fry the rest, adding more oil to the pan as needed.
5 Leave in the oven for 5 minutes or so after you’ve finished frying to cook through.
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