Leek Purée

This leek purée is smooth and creamy. It can be served with any dish that you normally serve onions.

1½ lbs leeks, white and light green parts only, halved lengthwise and sliced ½" thick, thoroughly washed and drained (about 4 small leeks)
2 Tbsp. unsalted butter
kosher or sea salt
black pepper, freshly ground
1/8 tsp. nutmeg, freshly grated

Meanwhile, for the leek purée, bring a saucepan of salted water to a boil. Add leeks, and cook until very tender, about 5 minutes. Drain leeks and transfer to a blender or food processor with butter and purée; season with salt and pepper. Transfer leek purée back to saucepan and keep warm.

How to Wash Leeks: A lot of dirt gets trapped between the layers in leeks, so it’s incredibly important to clean leeks before cooking with them. To clean them, first trim off the dark green parts of the leek, starting at the point where the leaves fan out. Trim the root end, slice the leek in half, lengthwise, then slice crosswise. Transfer the sliced leeks to a large bowl. Run cold water over the leeks until leeks are submerged. Let leeks soak for 5 minutes, then gently lift leeks out of the water (trying not to disturb the water much) and transfer to a bowl; discard water. Repeat soaking and draining once more.