Potato and leek soup

Based on a recipe from Jamie Oliver's site (the user editable portion of the site).

Ingredients:

• 2 ounces of pancetta, roughly chopped
• one small onion, diced
• 2 cloves of garlic, crushed
• 3 weeks, chopped (use white and light green parts only)
• 2 bay leaves
• ~2 cups low sodium chicken stock
• 1 pound (2 large) russet potatoes, diced
• ~1/4 cup heavy cream
  

Method:

• In a Dutch oven, or heavy pot, cook the pancetta over medium heat until slightly rendered
• add the onion, and stir to coat with fat, adding a bit of oil if needed; cook until onions are softened and translucent
• add the garlic
• add the leeks and sauté for a couple of minutes
• add the diced potatoes, season lightly with salt and pepper
• Add the bay leaves
  
• add enough chicken stock to just cover the solid ingredients
• Bring to a boil, then cover and reduce to a simmer for 30 minutes
• adjust seasoning with salt and pepper
• remove bay leaves and blend (optionally withholding one third of the solids to be added back in)
• Add in the cream and blend to mix to bring richness up to desired level
  

Analysis:

• I left out the blue cheese called for in the original recipe; was very respectable, but not spectacular without; possibly reduce the amount of cream if blue cheese is added
  
• I also didn't have the chopped chives for garnish, which would have been nice (used parsley instead)
  
• be careful not to add too much pepper! I think I hid some of the more subtle flavors with the large amounts I added.