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Have I ever told you that mushrooms are one of my most favorite foods of all time? Well, if I haven’t…they are. In fact, as much as I hate and loathe bananas, that’s how much I love and adore mushrooms. Or, to put a finer point on it: If bananas are my death, mushrooms are my life. Or I’ll lay myself even more bare: Bananas make me want to run and hide; Mushrooms make me want to dance and sing.
And this soup? Well, it not only makes me want to dance and sing, but it also makes me want to sculpt, write, create, and shout from the rooftops everything that is mysterious and wonderful about fungi. It is creamy and magical, enchanting and romantic, and just the antidote for this cold snap we’ve been in!
(Sorry for all the excessive language. Maybe someday I’ll just start a cooking post with something like “I like mushrooms. Here’s a tasty soup.”)
(Then again, maybe I won’t…)
The Cast of Characters!
First, slice the mushrooms. Most of them are going to wind up pureed later, so no need to be neat or symmetrical! Just slice.
Heat 2 tablespoons butter in a pot over medium-high heat…
Then add 1/3 of the sliced mushrooms…
And cook them for about 5 to 6 minutes, stirring occasionally, until they’re very golden and beautiful.
After they’re perfect and browned, season them with salt and pepper…
And remove them to a plate for later.
Meantime, chop the onion and celery…
Mince the thyme leaves…
Then reduce the heat to medium and add more butter to the pan…
And add the rest of the mushrooms, along with the onion, celery, garlic, and thyme.
Stir and cook for about 5-6 minutes…
Until the veggies are soft. There should be some liquid in the pan from the ‘shrooms!
Sprinkle 3 tablespoons flour all over the veggies (I actually did closer to 2 tablespoons. Depends on how thick you like the soup!)
Season with a little more salt and pepper…
Then stir to distribute the flour. Cook, stirring constantly, for about 3 minutes to give the flour a chance to cook.
Then pour in about 3/4 cup of wine! You can use sherry OR you can get serious and use brandy. Or, if you’d like to omit the alcohol, just add broth/stock in its place. I love the flavor of the wine in this soup, but it’s still totally delicious without it!
Once the wine is in, it should start to thicken pretty quickly. Stir it around for a minute or two…
Then add vegetable stock OR low-sodium chicken broth, depending on whether you want this to be vegetarian or not.
Stir to make sure all the lumps are gone…
Then simmer the soup for about 20 minutes on low!
This is what it looks like at that point. Now, you could absolutely proceed with the soup with the texture it is right now. But I like to puree it so the mushrooms are more fine and the mushroom flavor is more distributed throughout the soup.
Have I mentioned how much I love mushrooms?
I’m pureeing the soup in a blender, so I let it sit for 20-25 minutes to cool, then transfer it to a blender. (You should never blend hot soups – I’ve learned that the hard way!)
This is after a few pulses…
And this is holding it down for about 10-12 seconds. This is the texture I want!
Pour the soup back into the pot and heat it up…
Then add the cream…
Stir to combine…
Then just a little balsamic to brighten it up a bit!
Oh, and this is what I love to serve with soup these days: Tear a loaf of French bread into jagged chunks…
Then drizzle on olive oil and toss them to coat.
Bake the chunks at 400 degrees for about 6 minutes! Good lands, these are marvelous.
To serve, ladle the soup into a bowl…
Add a little pile of the browned mushrooms on top…
And sprinkle on parsley!
I try not to overuse this acronym, but it’s fitting here: O. M. G.
This is splendid!
Oh, and that bread? Yeah…here it is.
You will slurp (or dab) up every last bite.
(And have I mentioned how much I love mushrooms? I could have sworn I mentioned it…)
