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November 17, 2007
Vegetarian Friendly Thanksgiving -- Tasty mushroom soup
I had a bunch of mushrooms left over from the stuffed onion recipe that did not go very well last weekend, so I decided to try making a creamy mushroom soup. I'm pleased to say it was a success! Even my skeptical, soup-hating husband was won over by this soup. It is really rich, and delicious served with a nice crusty bread. This is based on a recipe I found in Vegetable Soups from Deborah Madison's kitchen, although I changed it a little bit.
Creamy Mushroom Soup
2 tablespoons butter
1/2 cup chopped shallots or onions (shallots are a little richer tasting)
2 tablespoons chopped parsley (I used italian parsley)
1 pound mushrooms, rinsed and chopped -- I had a mixture of cremini, shitake and baby bella mushrooms
sea salt and fresh ground pepper
3 cloves of garlic, chopped
1 teaspoon dried rosemary (actually, I might bump this up to 2 teaspoons next time)
1 cup bread crumbs
1 quart mushroom broth/stock
1/4 cup to 1/2 cup cream
Melt the two tablespoons butter in a wide soup pot over medium high heat. When it is frothy, add the shallots and the parsley. Cook for several minutes, then add the mushrooms, garlic and rosemary. Stir to coat the mushrooms with the butter. Season with 1/2 teaspoon sea salt. Cook over medium heat until the mushrooms' liquid is released. That will take several minutes. Then add the bread crumbs and the stock. Bring to a boil and simmer, covered, for 15 minutes.
Once the soup is finished cooking, puree it in a blender for about a minute. You want to leave some flecks of mushroom for texture. Return the soup to the pan, and taste to see if it needs any more salt. Swirl in the cream -- I used 1/2 a cup, but it was VERY creamy. I may only use a 1/4 cup next time. Season with pepper to taste, and then serve. I served it hot, but Deborah Madison's recipe says it is good chilled too.
Edited to add -- I just had some leftover soup, and this stuff is even better the second day after the flavors have had a chance to set in. Yummy!
Posted by Bad Penguin at November 17, 2007 3:44 PM