A friend recently gave me the book French Women Don’t Get Fat. While no longer a new book, it was a perfect read for the beginning of the New Year. In the book, Magical Leek Soup was Dr. Miracle’s cure for quick weight loss in conjunction with a supporting cast of good habits, like eating correctly, moving whenever possible, and not snacking. It is explained in the book that leeks are a mild diuretic and after 48 hours of eating nothing but, this elixir helps to “re-set” the body.

After the marathon feasting of the holidays, this simple soup seems very appealing indeed and a good way to kick start the New Year. The idea is to spend a weekend eating nothing but this soup for best results.

image: solongfrivolity.wordpress.com

Magical Leek Soup
Laura Cabot, Laura Cabot Catering, Waldoboro

2 pounds leeks
Filtered water to cover

The hardest part of this recipe is cleaning the leeks properly. This is most important or you will have a sandy soup. Cut half of the leek greens off and reserve for a stock in another recipe. Split the leeks and clean carefully under running water to get rid of the dirt.

Place the leeks in a heavy pot and cover with water. Bring to a simmer, without a lid, and let it cook for a half hour.

Pour off the liquid and reserve. Place the leeks in a bowl.

The juice is to be drunk, re-heated, every couple of hours, a cup at a time. If you get very hungry, eat some of the leeks too, 1/2 cup at a time.

It is fine to season the soup and leeks sparingly with olive oil, salt and pepper, or a bit of lemon juice.

Serves one for a slimming weekend.

Laura Cabot is an MF&L columnist and blogger, a French trained chef with a long career as a chef/restaurant owner, and president of Laura Cabot Catering in Waldoboro.