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Year of the Soup: Week 13

I really phoned this one in.  I bought dried mushrooms and fresh mushrooms, and thought everything would be great.  But I forgot about the shallot (had to use onion), sherry (made an odd concoction of vinegar, sugar and vanilla extract that I saw online), and the cream (butter and skim milk had to work.)  Grocery shopping fail.  I can’t imagine my version did the original recipe justice.  It was recommended by a friend who has good taste in food, so I trust it normally tastes delicious.  But mine was a bit pathetic, and not very good.  Bummer.  New rule for The Year of the Soup: always buy the correct ingredients.

Creamy Mushroom Soup

Ingredients
  • 1 oz. mixed dried mushrooms, such as oysters, porcini, or chanterelles, plus more for garnish (optional)
  • 1 1/2 cups vegetable broth
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil, divided
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt, divided
  • 8 oz. fresh  mushrooms, such as cremini, white button, or baby bella, chopped
  • 1/2 cup finely chopped shallot
  • 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
  • 1 clove garlic, minced
  • 1/2 cup sherry
  • 1 tablespoon flour
  • 1/2 cup cream
Directions
  1. Place dried mushrooms in a medium bowl and cover with 2 cups of water.  Let stand 30 min.
  2. Drain mushrooms, reserving soaking liquid.  Bring soaking liquid and broth to simmer in saucepan over medium heat.  Cover and keep warm.
  3. Heat 1 1/2 teaspoons of olive oil in saucepan over medium heat.  Add rehydrated mushrooms and 1/4 teaspoon salt.  Saute 2 minutes or until tender.  Transfer mushrooms to plate and set aside.
  4. Heat remaining 1 1/2 teaspoons olive oil in same pan over medium heat.  Add fresh mushrooms, shallot, pepper and remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt.  Cook 2 minutes, stirring frequently.  Add garlic and cook 30 seconds, or until fragrant.  Increase heat to medium-high and stir in sherry.  Simmer 3 minutes or until liquid is reduced by half.
  5. Whisk flour into broth mixture.  Add mushrooms and bring to a boil.  Reduce heat and simmer 30 minutes.
  6. Transfer soup to food processor or blender and puree until smooth.  Return to bot and stir in cream.  Serve hot.