Cream of Mushroom Soup
Cream of Mushroom Soup
Serves 4
Background:
This is a recipe we look forward to preparing every fall about 2 weeks after the first major rain. Greg always hopes it is not until November so all his precious grapes are in the winery. Greg’s cousin Gil Tournour has for several years now taken Greg on mushroom hunting expeditions behind locked gates (but does not give Greg access to the key) to instruct him in the fine art of hunting for wild mushrooms. On these and other journeys Greg has returned with a virtual treasure chest of wild mushrooms. As many as 4 different types of boletus, chanterelles, and the Death Angle cousin, Amanita calyptroderma or Amanita Lanei or what the Italians around here call Coccoli or Coccola. We get so many that we must dry them for later in the year. The boletus varieties are especially good for this.
Ingredients:
5 cups sliced fresh mushrooms, preferably several types of wild mushrooms such as Porcini or Chanterelles
6 tablespoons butter
½ cup onion, chopped
⅛ teaspoon thyme, chopped
5 cloves garlic, minced
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 ½ cups chicken broth
¼ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
1 cup heavy cream
1 tablespoon sherry
Method:
Heat the butter in a large pot over medium heat. Add the mushrooms, onions, thyme and garlic to butter and cook, stirring occasionally over medium heat until tender, about 10 to 15 minutes. Stir in the flour and keep stirring for 2 minutes more.
Pour in the chicken broth and cream. Stir in sherry and salt and pepper to taste. Lower heat and simmer for 15 minutes to thicken soup.
Wine Pairing:
Dolcetto, Grenache, Pinot Noir