The Humble Mushroom
Lightly washed, dried and sliced. Cooked in oil until beads of moisture start to appear. Flipped over one by one as colour starts to appear on one side and finished on the other side. The humble mushroom is then packed with flavour. Colour equals flavour.
Big words equals big taste
Edible mushrooms come in many shapes and sizes. From the tiny enoki to the Termitomyces Titanicus. Each of them having their own distinct texture and flavour. Containing fibre, antioxidants and protein they do have health benefits. Americans eat approximately three pounds of mushrooms per year. If you think about it though, this soup is made with one pound of mushrooms in itself. Maybe Canadians eat more. Mushrooms that have been grown in ultra-violet light can also have small amounts of vitamin D. This helps your body absorb calcium. These work together to help you maintain healthy bones and teeth.
Let’s dust off that blender!
So what’s stopping you from turning a pound of that healthy fungus into an amazing mushroom soup? If you have an immersion blender or just a plain old blender you’re all set. We’re keeping it local for this recipe by using Canadian grown button mushrooms. A soft white mushroom with a woodsy flavour that breaks down well, making it ideal for soup.
Mushroom Soup
Equipment
- immersion blender
- blender
Ingredients
- 2-4 tbsp canola oil
- 1 lb white button mushrooms sliced
- 2 tbsp butter
- 1 small onion diced
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- 2 tbsp all purpose flour
- 3 cups chicken broth
- 2 tbsp table cream
- pinch salt
- freshly ground pepper
Instructions
- In a large frying pan with canola oil, saute the sliced mushrooms. When moisture just starts to appear and the mushrooms are starting to brown, flip them over. When lightly browned, remove from heat and set aside. Continue until all the mushrooms are cooked adding more oil as necessary.
- in a large pot over medium heat, melt the butter and cook the diced onions until soft. Add garlic, salt and pepper cook for another minute while stirring.Add the flour while continuing to stir and cook for another 1-2 minutes.
- Slowly add the chicken broth, stirring until the mixture thickens and just starts to bubble.
- Add ¾ of the mushrooms, turn the heat to low and simmer for 5 minutes. Remove from heat and blend until smooth.
- Return the blended soup to a clean pot. Chop the remainder of the mushrooms and add to the soup. Finish with cream, stir and reheat until hot. Serve in bowls with freshly ground pepper.
We all love canned soup, but…
There’s something to be said for listening to that slurpy noise as the condensed cream of mushroom soup slithers out of the can. It always amazed me how it could retain its gelatinous form in the shape of the can. That being said, making your own soup from scratch is a much healthier alternative to canned or condensed soup. The sodium level of canned soup is high. On the flip side, low sodium soups tend to be lacking in flavour. Making your own soup gives you the ability to pick fresh ingredients and know exactly what you’re going to be eating.
If you’re looking for something to have with it, this soup goes amazingly well with our cheese and bacon crostini toasts.
Enjoy!
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