Wild Mushroom Soup
- Serves 8
1 Shallot, diced
12 Tablespoons of butter
¾ cup onion,
chopped into ½ “ pieces
¾ cup celery, chopped into ½” pieces
1 ½ cups potatoes, peeled and cut into ½ “ pieces
1 cup leeks (white parts only), chopped into
½ “ pieces
3 whole bay leaves (Wrapped in cheese cloth or tied together for easy removal)
3 tablespoons freshly chopped Italian parsley stems, no leaves (Save leaves for garnish)
1-tablespoon
fresh thyme
6 whole garlic cloves, peeled
8 cups vegetable or chicken stock
2 lbs fresh wild mushrooms cut into ½ pieces
2 cups of cream
Salt and
pepper to taste
Melt 8 tablespoons of butter in a thick-bottomed saucepan. Add
onions, shallots, celery, potatoes and leeks. Cover and cook for a few minutes making sure not to brown them. Add the bay
leaves, parsley stems, thyme and garlic cloves; stir and cover. Cook at a low heat to sweat the vegetables and herbs for about
15 minutes, controlling the heat so they do not take on any color. Uncover and let some of the liquid that has formed evaporate
(turn the heat up a little to help this along). Pour in the stock, bring to a boil and simmer this base for 30 minutes.
In the meantime, make sure all the mushrooms are clean and cut to the same size, then season with salt and pepper.
Sauté then in 2 tablespoons butter at high heat until just tender. Place mushrooms into the soup base. The cream can
be reduced by half and also added. At this time the soup can be seasoned with salt and pepper to your liking. Remove Bay Leaves
before blending. Blend the soup. The last tablespoon of butter can be stirred in at the end.
This Wild Mushroom Soup can be garnished with either chopped chives or Italian parsley. And, if you happened to have
some, White Truffle oil makes this soup sublime. Enjoy!
