From carrots to croutons: Everything for fabulous home-made wild mushroom soup

The Chappaqua Farmers Market at the train station from 8:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m.
November 11, 2011
by Pascale LeDraoulec

Usually when I come across a recipe that really catches my eye, the ingredient list is often too long or rife with hard to find items.  Not so with David Tanis’ recipe for “cream of mushroom soup from scratch” in this week’s Dining section of the New York Times.

I’m a huge fan of Tanis’ earthy cooking (and writing) style.  (Some day soon I will dig up his dynamite spatchcocked chicken recipe for you).

Tanis has been contributing regularly to the city kitchen column in the Dining section for a while now.  This week’s recipe is particularly appealing because practically everything you need to make it is right at your fingertips at the Chappaqua Farmers Market—from the carrot to the crouton.

How easy is that?

Here is the recipe, but, in case you missed it, it’s worth checking out the http://www.nytimes.com/2011/11/09/dining/cream-of-wild-mushroom-soup-from-scratch.html”>actual link to read Tanis’ own words about the pleasures (and perils) of foraging for wild mushrooms.

City Kitchen: Wild Mushrooms Make the Soup, November 9, 2011

2 tablespoons butter

2 medium onions, sliced, about 2 cups

2 small parsnips, peeled and chopped

1 small carrot, peeled and chopped

1 thyme branch, plus 1 teaspoon thyme leaves, finely chopped

1 bay leaf

Salt and pepper

6 cups chicken or vegetable broth, more if necessary

2 tablespoons chopped dried morel or porcini mushrooms, soaked in hot water for 15 minutes, then drained

2 tablespoons olive oil

1/2 pound chanterelles or other wild or cultivated mushrooms, in roughly 1/8-inch slices

2 garlic cloves, minced

6 slices day-old baguette

2 tablespoons chopped parsley

Crème fraîche, optional.

1. Melt the butter in a deep heavy-bottomed soup pot over medium heat. Add the onions, parsnips, carrot, thyme branch and bay leaf. Season generously with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring frequently, until the onion is soft and lightly browned, about 10 minutes

2. Add the broth and the soaked dried mushrooms. Bring to a boil, then adjust the heat to a gentle simmer.

3. Meanwhile, heat the olive oil over high heat in a wide skillet. When the oil is hot, add the chanterelles, stirring with a wooden spoon, allowing them to brown a bit. Season with salt and pepper, then turn the heat to medium and sauté 5 to 7 minutes, until the mushrooms are cooked through. Add the garlic and thyme leaves and cook 1 minute more.

4. Transfer 1/2 cup of the cooked chanterelles to a small skillet and add the rest to the soup. Let the pot simmer until the parsnips and carrot are quite tender, about 15 to 20 minutes.

5. Discard the bay leaf and thyme branch. Purée the soup in a blender and strain through a fine-meshed sieve. Thin with more broth if it is too thick, and correct the seasoning. Keep hot.

6. Warm the reserved mushrooms. Toast the baguette slices lightly and put a spoonful of mushrooms on each.

7. Ladle the hot soup into bowls. Top each bowl with a mushroom toast, a little chopped parsley, and a drizzle of crème fraîche if you like.

Yield: 4 to 6 servings.

This week, Hummingbird Ranch visits us in Chappaqua.

If you are “guesting” for the Thanksgiving holiday, consider giving some local buckwheat honey as a hostess gift! And make sure you get enough honey stix for all the “young” guests at your table.

Also: A reminder that we will have our first annual pre-Thanksgiving Farmers Market in Irvington this year. The market will be Wed. Nov. 23rd from 1 to 5 p.m. at the Main Street School in Irvington (101 Main St.), Many of your favorite vendors will be there so please stop by for some fresh, local ingredients for your holiday table.

November 15th is America Recycles Day— The New Castle Sustainability Advisory Board will be at the Farmers Market to teach you how to become a better, more committed recycler.

And don’t miss our musical entertainment: TJay is back!

Food writer and author Pascale Le Draoulec is Director of the Chappaqua Farmers Market.