Potato Soup in Salzburg Style

Ingredients

• 500 g waxy potatoes
• 2 carrots
• 1 onion
• 1 tsp Olive oil
• dried Marjoram
• 1 bay leaf
• 800 ml vegetable broth
• Salt
• Pepper (freshly ground)
• grated ginger
• 250 g mixed mushrooms (e.g., chanterelles, red caps)
• 100 g bacon belly
• 2 tbsp butter
• 4 thin slices of rye bread
• 200 ml heavy cream (at least 30% fat)
• fresh lovage for garnish

Instructions

1. 1.

   Wash, peel, and dice the potatoes and carrots. Peel and dice the onion. Heat the olive oil in a large pot, add the vegetables and some marjoram, and sauté until translucent. Pour in the vegetable broth, add the bay leaf, and simmer for 15-20 minutes until the vegetables are still firm. Remove one-third of the vegetables and the bay leaf and set aside.

2. 2.

   Cook the remaining vegetables until soft, then puree. Season with salt, pepper, and grated ginger. Clean the mushrooms with a damp kitchen cloth, cut into strips or cubes. Dice the bacon belly and crisp it in a hot pan without oil; remove and drain on paper towels. Sauté the mushrooms in butter for about 3 minutes, turning as needed.

3. 3.

   Remove the mushrooms and crisp the rye bread slices in the same pan, then drain on paper towels. Add the cream to the soup and whisk briefly with an immersion blender. Return the reserved vegetables and warm them through. Ladle the soup into bowls, add the mushrooms and bacon, and garnish with toasted bread slices and a lovage leaf.