Make base ahead of time for this classic vichyssoise

Petite Auberge makes the very best vichyssoise I have ever had, bar none. Any chance Anthony (chef/owner) would share? — Donald Donovan, Hiram

As always, Anthony Gropp, head chef and co-owner of Petite Violette was happy to share. Earlier this year, the restaurant moved from its longtime home in Toco Hill to its new location on Clairmont Road and changed its name as well. Petite Auberge no more, it’s now Petite Violette.

This is a great do-ahead recipe. You can make the vichyssoise base ahead of time and when you’re ready to serve it, combine with cream and half-andhalf to make up just the number of cups you need. A serving at Petite Violette is 1 cup.

This recipe was a little tricky to scale down from the many gallon version the restaurant makes. We scaled it back to about a third of the large batch. You’ll have enough base for many, many cups of soup, so reserve this recipe for a large dinner party (and a few luncheons after).

The restaurant uses bacon ends and pieces, an economical way to purchase bacon, to make what is essentially a flavoring sachet for the mixture. You can buy bacon ends and pieces at a few places including Pine Street Market in Avondale Estates, or just use 1/3 pound of your favorite bacon.

Is there a recipe from a metro Atlanta restaurant you’d like to make at home? Tell us and we’ll try to get it. We’ll also test it and adapt it for the home kitchen. Because of volume, we can’t answer all inquiries. Send your request, your address and phone number to fromthemenu@gmail.com and put “From the menu of ” and the name of restaurant in the subject line.