Creamy Leek and Potato Soup

This week I finally had time to use one of our Christmas presents - an immersion blender! How fitting considering January is national soup month! When we got it, I immediately knew that first up was going to be Creamy Leek and Potato Soup. I didn't have a specific recipe in mind, so I did some research and ended up combining a few. It turned out extremely well and I'm actually making more this afternoon! This soup is so incredibly flavorful and delicious and the best part is that it is full of healthy vegetables! Bryan liked it so much that he deemed it to be a weekly staple!

Creamy Leek and Potato Soup
adapted from Epicurious

Ingredients:
3 tbsp butter
3 large leeks (white and pale green parts only), halved lengthwise and thinly sliced
3 carrots, sliced (approx)
4 celery ribs, sliced (approx)
3 cloves of garlic, diced
1/2 white onion, diced (approx)
2 large, or 4 small potatoes, cubed (approx)
1/2 cup white wine
thyme
parsley
salt
pepper
5 cups (approx) chicken or vegetable stock
heavy cream

Directions:
Melt butter in heavy large saucepan over medium heat. Add leeks and stir to coat with butter. Cook until leeks are tender, stirring often, about 10 minutes. Add remaining vegetables and potatoes and cook until potatoes begin to soften but do not brown. Sprinkle on thyme, parsley, salt and pepper. Add white wine and simmer about five minutes. Add chicken or vegetable stock and bring to a boil. Reduce heat, cover and simmer until vegetables are very tender, 25-30 minutes. I also sprinkled on another round of spices at this point. Once the vegetables are soft and the soup is spiced to taste, turn off the heat and slowly drizzle your desired amount of heavy cream into the soup and blend. Then blend with the immersion blender. If you do not have one, you can puree the soup in batches in a blender or processor until smooth. Adjust thickness of soup with additional stock if needed. Serve and enjoy!