Candle Cafe

It's an oldie but a goodie for us--The Candle Cafe Cookbook has been around our kitchen for several years and we love the recipes we've tried from it! Candle Cafe is a restaurant in the city (eh hem, New York City) that has been around for years serving fabulous vegan fare. Its fancier, more gourmet companion is Candle 79 (which I also have the cookbook for, although its recipes are a little more complex than this one). Brian and I ate at Candle 79 for my birthday a few years ago and it was our first experience in an all-vegan restaurant. It was fabulous to look at a menu and know that you can eat anything on it!

Anyway, I like the simplicity of this cookbooks and the pure yumminess of its recipes. Among my favorites are the butternut squash soup, velvety carrot and ginger soup, and the potato leek soup--do you notice a theme happening here? Also, the vegetable lasagna with herbed tofu ricotta is amazing, albeit a little more complex than some of the other recipes. I am a big fan of this cookbook and highly recommend it if you are interested in trying some simple yet delicious recipes. Here is my favorite soup to make from Candle Cafe...

Potato-Leek Soup

4 potatoes, peeled and coarsely chopped
2 leeks, white and pale green parts only, rinsed and finely chopped
2 large onions, peeled and finely chopped
4 carrots, peeled and finely chopped
4 celery stalks, finely chopped
1 tsp. dried parsley
1 tsp. sea salt
freshly ground black pepper

1. In a large pot, put 7 cups of water, the potatoes, leeks, onions, carrots, and celery.
2. Bring to a boil and add the parsley, sea salt and pepper to taste. Reduce the heat and simmer, uncovered, for 30 minutes, until vegetables are very tender. Remove from the heat and set aside to cool.
3. Transfer the soup to a food processor or blender and blend until smooth. This may have to be done in batches. Return soup to the pot and gently reheat. Taste and adjust the seasonings and serve at once.

Note: I highly recommend using Yukon Gold potatoes in this recipe because they have a nice flavor and make the soup creamier. Also, I usually don't let it cool before blending because I don't have time to wait. Just be careful when transferring it to the blending when it's hot. I love that this soup just uses veggies and water. So simple yet so delish!