Kipper Chowder

This soup is from the new River Cottage book Light and Easy, which doesn't seem to have a TV series to compliment it. I was given it for Christmas and I have bookmarked in the traditional sense of the word lots of recipes to make from it. I'm also on a bit of a soup kick with all this cold weather, tis the season and all that! I really enjoyed this kipper chowder, you couldn't feel the bones of the kippers, which is the one thing I hate about them, so that and the lovely smoky flavour made the soup fantastic in my book!

Kipper Chowder
(Serves 4)

1 tbsp oil
1 large leek, quartered lengthways and sliced
250g potatoes, peeled and diced into 1cm cubes
2 garlic cloves, grated
4 kipper fillets
2 rounded tsp cornflour, mixed to a paste with water
850ml milk
2 bay leaves
small bunch parsley, chopped
small bunch chives, sliced
juice 1/2 lemon
salt and pepper

Put a large saucepan over a medium heat. Add the oil, followed by the leeks. Season with a little salt and pepper and gently sweat the leeks for a couple of mins, until softened a little. Add the potatoes and garlic and cook for a further 3-4 mins, stirring often.

Meanwhile, carefully skin the kipper fillets and cut into 2cm pieces.

Stir the cornflour paste into the leek and potato mixture, then pour in the milk, add the bay leaves and bring to a simmer. Cook gently for 10-12 mins until the potatoes are almost tender. Add the kipper pieces and stir them in. Bring back to a simmer, then turn off the heat and put a lid on the pan. Leave to stand for 5-10 mins. This will cook the kipper and infuse the soup with its smoky flavour.

Add the parsley, chives, lemon juice and salt and pepper and serve.