I've never been a fan of soups. When I was little I hated all the soups my mom made except for borscht (it will be my next soup-making project for sure!) Lately I fell in love with Thai soups such as Tom Kha Gai (chicken coconut soup) and Tom Yum. Chinese hot and sour soup is also my favorite. So I surprised myself one day when thinking what to make for dinner. All of a sudden I decided I felt like making a soup. Mind you, it was cold and nasty outside (a typical February day) and I felt like cooking something nice and comforting. So I browsed through Fresh & Healthy Cooking For Two (an amazing recipe book that one of our friends gave us as an engagement gift a couple of months ago) and stumbled upon a recipe for a mushroom soup. It sounded great and the accompanying picture looked delicious! My mom and grandma used to make wild mushroom soup when I was a kid. It was my brother's favorite and my most hated. I had to leave the kitchen when they were making it - I couldn't stand the smell. Since then I always thought I hated mushroom soups. Weird, since I LOVE mushrooms. So coming upon the recipe in the book I decided to take a chance and give it a try. The recipe called for white wine. That was the selling point for me of course.
Mixed Mushroom Soup with Fresh Thyme and Leeks
adapted from Fresh & Healthy Cooking For Two by Ellie Topp and Marilyn Booth
Makes 2 servings (1 1/2 cups each)
Ingredients:
2 tsp olive or canola oil
1/2 cup thinly sliced leek (white and pale green parts)
1/4 cup thinly sliced celery
2 cups sliced dark brown mushrooms (I used crimini and shiitake but you can also add portabella or oyster)
2 cups beef or vegetable broth
3 tbsp white wine (I'll be honest I used at least 4)
1 tsp chopped fresh thyme or 1/4 tsp dried
Salt and ground black pepper
Directions:
In a large saucepan, heat oil over medium heat. Add leek and celery and cook for 3 minutes, stirring frequently. Add mushrooms and cook for another 5 minutes or until vegetables are slightly soft.
Add broth, wine, and thyme. Cover, bring to a boil, reduce heat and boil gently for 40 minutes. Add salt and pepper to taste.
Jay and I both love this soup. In fact, we like it so much I'm making it again as I'm writing this (for the second time this week.)
Dear Soup, I'm glad and excited to welcome you back into my previously mostly soup-less life!
