This is the “little black dress” of mushroom soups. It’s basic. It’s elegant. It never disappoints.
This recipe is from Deborah Madison’s cookbook Vegetable Soups from Deborah Madison’s Kitchen. You can order the book through your local bookstore or on Amazon here. It is a great book to have in your collection if you are a soup person like me.
Here is the recipe as I prepared it in my kitchen.
A Really Good Mushroom Soup
May 24, 2024
Ingredients
- 1-3 T. butter
- 1/2 C. chopped shallot (or onion)
- 2 T. chopped parsley
- 1 pound mushrooms (rinsed and chopped)
- Salt and freshly-ground pepper
- 1 garlic clove (minced)
- 1 C. bread crumbs
- 1 quart vegetable broth
- 1/2 C. cream
- Chopped parsley (or extra cream) for garnish
Directions
- Step 1 Melt butter in a large soup pan. Saute shallots and parsley in the butter until they are soft. Add the mushrooms and stir to distribute the mushrooms in the butter mixture. I used cremini mushrooms in my soup. Add 1/2 t. salt. Mix. Continue to cook the ingredients until the mushrooms release their liquid.
- Step 2 Add garlic, bread crumbs and stock and mix. Bring the soup mixture to a boil . Lower the heat to medium and simmer for about 15 minutes.
- Step 3 Puree the soup in a blender or food processor. I found it was too easy to turn the soup into a totally smooth soup. So, I pureed it in batches and left the last batch less pureed. This gave me little flecks of mushroom in the soup and a more interesting texture overall.
- Step 4 Stir the cream into the soup. Thin with a little broth if you like. Adjust salt and add pepper to your taste. Garnish with chopped parsley or a swirl of cream. Serve with crusty bread.
