Kartoffelsuppe mit Garnelen (Potato Soup with Shrimps)

This is a recent recipe I discovered from a German food magazine called, Lecker. I served this for our New Year's Eve dinner and it was really impressive. I have also served this as a casual mid week meal and omitted the shrimps. Despite the small ingredient list, this soup is really tasty.

Serves 4:
8-12 big shrimps, shelled and deveined
2 shallots or 1 onion
1 medium sized carrot
1.5 lbs. potatoes (not floury potatoes ... try new potatoes)
2 T. butter
1 T. vegetable bouillon (or omit if you have fresh veggie broth on hand)
1 small container whipping cream
horseradish, for garnish (although I omitted this)

Prep the veggies:
1. Peel and chop the shallots or onion
2. Peel, wash and chop the carrots and potatoes into large pieces

Heat 1 T. butter in a large soup pot. Toss in the shallots, carrot, and potatoes and saute for a couple of minutes. Add 1 liter water and heat to a low boil. Add the bouillon, salt and pepper. Let it boil slowly with the top on for 20 minutes.

Meanwhile, wash and dry the shrimp. Saute the shrimp in a non-stick pan with the remaining 1 T butter for about 1-2 minutes per side. Season with salt.

After the soup has cooked for roughly 20 minutes, check the potatoes. If they are done ... here is my deviation from the recipe ... I take a couple of potato chunks out and finely dice and set aside. Next, puree the soup with a hand mixer or in a blender ... it's ok to leave it slightly chunky. Add half the cream and mix in. Divide the soup among 4 bowls and garnish with the diced potatoes you set aside, another swirl of cream, shrimps, and horseradish strips (if you like).