Comfort food.
In normal times, whether it’s an oatmeal cookie or a bowl of this Cream of Mushroom Soup, there is always a place in our lives for the comfort of food.
But, these are not normal times.
Fierce wildfires are raging here in Southern California. People have died. Whole communities have been turned to ash.
Safety. Shelter. Services. Compassion. Those are the critical needs when disaster strikes, of course. But people also need normalcy. Familiar foods provide some of that normalcy.
Fortunately, World Central Kitchen is on the ground in Los Angeles providing sustenance to fire victims and to the courageous men and women who are fighting the fires and protecting the peace. In their short history, World Central Kitchen has provided more than 450 million meals to people in desperate situations and now they are here in Los Angeles.
If you can, give them some help. Here is a link to their donation site: World Central Kitchen.
For those of us on the periphery of this disaster, there is a place for the comfort of food, too. Here is a recipe that I’m finding some comfort in during these frightening times–a cookbook written to aid people in an earlier unimaginable crisis. This recipe is from Barbara Abdeni Massad’s cookbook, Soup For Syria, a collection of recipes by chefs ranging from Anthony Bourdain to Sami Tamimi, compiled to raise money for humanitarian aid to Syria back in 2016. Of that book, former CNN Correspondent Jim Clancy, wrote: “Soup for Syria may be the most compelling cookbook ever created. Through her photographs and collected recipes, Barbara Massaad directly connects us with a people in dire need of our help. Just holding this book is nourishment for the soul.”
Here is the recipe as I prepared it in my kitchen.
Pure Comfort: Cream of Mushroom Soup
Ingredients
- 3 T. butter
- 1 1/2 pound mushrooms (wiped and sliced)
- 1 large onion (finely chopped)
- 1 large shallot (finely chopped)
- 1 T. flour
- 6 C. vegetable broth
- 1/2 C. cream
- Salt and pepper to taste
- Juice of 1 lemon (optional)
- 2 T. chopped parsley (for garnish)
- Sliced mushrooms (for garnish)
Directions
- Step 1 Saute sliced mushrooms in half the butter (melted) for about 5 minutes. You want the mushrooms to release some of their water and to soften.
- Step 2 Melt the rest of the butter in a large Dutch oven or soup pan. Saute the onion and shallot in the melted butter for several minutes until the onions and shallot become soft and translucent. Stir in the flour and cook over medium heat for about 2 minutes.
- Step 3 Slowly, add the vegetable broth, stirring as you add to keep the flour from forming lumps. Add 3/4 of the mushrooms to the broth. Simmer for about 20 minutes. Stir the mushrooms and broth occasionally to be sure nothing is sticking to the pan.
- Step 4 Puree the mushroom and broth mixture. You should have a creamy mushroom soup consistency, but you can leave some texture in the soup if you choose.
- Step 5 Wipe out your cooking pot and add the mushroom mixture back into the clean put. Heat mixture over low heat and stir in the cream and reserved mushrooms. Taste and add salt and pepper to taste. Add lemon juice if you want to brighten the flavor of the soup. I added a fair amount of salt to my taste.
- Step 6 Ladle soup into soup bowls and garnish with chopped fresh parsley and a few slices of mushrooms. Enjoy.
