Dark Days: A Rather Bland Soup

This week, my Dark Days challenge meal was a bit of a flop. I almost don't want to insult my readers by offering the "recipe", but I'll give an idea of what I did. It was a poor-woman's variation on Potato-Leek soup.

First, I burned some leeks:

 It was just a few of them that got charred, but that's all it takes to impart a nice "smokey" flavor to the whole soup.

Next, I chopped about three heaping handfuls of potatoes and two handfuls of carrots. I tossed those in with the leeks and a bit of sea salt and just enough water to cover the whole thing. Then I let it boil for about an hour and blended it all together with the hand blender.

After taste testing, I sprinkled in a bit of cumin to give it some flavor, but it was still a watery mush. Thinking of the old saying, "brussels sprouts make everything better" (wait, maybe I made that up?), I sauteed a handful of brussels sprouts in olive oil and salt and sprinkled them on top of the soup to add texture and flavor.

The brussels sprouts did a lot to improve the overall experience, but I still would not recommend this soup. It was a little better the second day, althought it gives me an odd stomach ache every time I eat it. My new plan is to spice it up and call it a "sauce" and pour it over something else. I may also mix it with some buckwheat flour and eggs and call it a pancake. I'll keep you posted.