soups are very popular at our house, and the potato leek soup in particular has always been a favorite. a few years back i'd had an amazing fennel soup at a restaurant in london that had left quite an impression on me. i think i've been able to (almost) replicate it, and recently i decided to marry it with the very popular potato leek soup-the resulting  potage has been quite a hit. try this recipe-it's really simple to make (even ahead of time), tastes fresh and delicious, and always hits the spot- you can serve it at room temperature in the summer, and it's just as good. for four servings:

• 1 large or 2 small fennel bulbs, with the soft greens included
• 4-5 thin leeks
• 2 small potatoes
• 1-2 tbs olive oil
• sea salt and freshly cracked pepper (to taste)
• 3 cups good chicken (or vegetable) broth
• freshly squeezed juice of 1/2 lemon (adjust to your taste)

wash the fennel,  remove the hard outer layer, then roughly chop and set aside. remove and discard the top few layers of the leeks then cut them down the middle (in half), and slice them at about 1-1.5 inches thick pieces. carefully wash the leeks and fennel in a "bath"- making sure all the sand has been washed out.

1. add the olive oil to a deep heavy pot, add the leeks and fennel and let them sweat on medium/high heat for about 4-5 minutes before adding the potatoes (roughly cubed), sea salt and pepper, and the broth. cover (partially) and simmer for about 35-45 minutes.

2. when all the vegetables are softened and look like above, add the freshly squeezed juice of 1/2 a lemon, then blend with an immersion (or other) blender. for additional creaminess and flavor you can add a small tsp of creme fraiche or sour cream-but this soup is so creamy that it hardly needs anything else.