Saturday, December 11, 2010

Soup’s On: Mushroom

Mushroom Soup


Soup is polarizing.  For some, it is the highlight of the meal, the perfect dish to demonstrate a chef’s ability (or lack of ability), a light lunch, or simply a comfort food to warm up on a cold day.  For others, me included, soup is overrated.  Either it’s a bland, broth-based soup with mushy vegetables or it’s an indulgent, creamy soup that makes you feel guilty.  In a restaurant, I always opt for the salad.



Prepping all the mushrooms
However, even for non-soup people like me, a soup comes along every once in a while that is the perfect combination of flavor, texture, and even healthiness.  This soup recipe, which I adapted from F&W’s Wild Mushroom Soup, turned out very well.  My friends and I love its hearty texture and earthy flavors.  As I mentioned in my previous entry on Asian cuisine, this soup also has the umami component, which comes from all the mushrooms (which deliver this type of flavor). 

I also enjoyed cooking it because you have a lot of flexibility within the recipe.  If your grocery store or farmer’s market has a good variety of mushrooms, you can pick out whatever is on sale or whichever mushrooms you love to eat.  I used a combination of white, portabella, and shiitake mushrooms, along with the some unusual ones, such as trumpet and oyster mushrooms. 






Another flexible aspect of the soup recipe is its texture.  I pureed my most recent batch only once, which made it slightly chunky.  However, if you prefer a very smooth, completely homogeneous soup, you can puree the soup again after adding the stock and water.  The viscosity of the soup is also a variable, which you can change to meet your taste.


Fresh portabellas

The only other soup I enjoy as much as this hearty mushroom soup is a well-made, roasted tomato soup.  If you have a favorite soup recipe, please post it below and I'll try it out.


Enjoy!




Mushroom Soup
(serves 6-8 bowls of soup)

Ingredients:
1 T. olive oil
¼ lb. pancetta, chopped
2 pounds mixed mushrooms, stemmed and thinly sliced
2 medium shallots, finely chopped
1 tsp fresh thyme, minced
¼ tsp fresh sage, minced
¼ tsp fresh rosemary, minced
¼ cup Marsala
2 T. Sherry
¼ cup heavy cream
1 quart mushroom stock (or low-sodium chicken stock)
2 cups water
Salt and freshly ground pepper
Chives, minced (for garnish)


Directions:
1. In a large pot, heat the olive oil
2. Add the chopped pancetta, cooking until it’s golden brown, 5-7 minutes
3. Remove pancetta and place on a plate with a paper towel to absorb the oil (but do not clean out the oil in the pan)
4. Add mushrooms to the pot, along with salt & pepper
5. Sauté until mushrooms cook down, about 10 minutes
6. Add the shallots and fresh herbs, stir, and let cook for 3-4 minutes
7. Add the Marsala and Sherry, stir, and let it reduce by half
8. Add heavy cream and return crispy pancetta to the pot; turn off heat
9. Using a food processor, blend the mushroom mixture into a fairly smooth consistently (or more to your preference)
10. Return the pureed mushroom mixture to the pot, add the stock and water
11. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to low and let cook for another 10-15 minutes, or until the soup reaches your desired consistency
12. Serve with fresh minced chives





2 comments:

  1. I love a great mushroom soup recipe! Thanks for posting. Although I have to admit – the soup section of my recipe binder is literally bursting with soups I love and is my most heavily utilized area. One of my favorites is a minestrone soup with quinoa – here is a link to the recipe in case you are interested:
    www.recipes.sparkpeople.com/recipe-detail.asp?recipe=833639

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  2. Thanks Pooja. Your recipe looks great! I love the substitute of quinoa for the pasta. We'll have to test it out to handle all this chilly weather.

    *For some reason, the 'www' inhibits the link. I reposted it below, which should work now.

    http://recipes.sparkpeople.com/recipe-detail.asp?recipe=833639

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