Rich Mushroom Soup

Source: Cooking Light

2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 cup boiling water
1 cup dried porcini mushrooms (about 1 ounce)
2 teaspoons butter
1 1/2 cups chopped onion
2 teaspoons chopped garlic
2 teaspoons finely chopped fresh thyme (I used dried)
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
6 1/2 cups thinly sliced shiitake mushroom caps (about 1 pound mushrooms)**
2 (8-ounce) packages presliced button mushrooms
4 cups fat-free, less-sodium chicken broth
1 cup 1% low-fat milk (I used skim milk)
1/2 cup half-and-half
1/4 cup dry sherry
Chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley (optional)
**I used a about 8 ounces of shiitake, 8 ounces of cremini and 14 ounces of button

Place flour in a small skillet over medium-high heat; cook 2 minutes or until flour turns light brown, stirring constantly. Transfer the flour to a small plate; cool.

Combine boiling water and porcini mushrooms in a bowl; cover and let steep 20 minutes. Strain porcini mushrooms through a sieve over a bowl, reserving the soaking liquid. Chop the mushrooms.

Melt butter in a Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add onion; sauté 5 minutes or until tender. Add garlic, thyme, salt, and pepper; sauté 30 seconds. Add shiitake mushrooms; cook 3 minutes, stirring constantly. Add button mushrooms; cook 3 minutes, stirring constantly. Add chopped porcini mushrooms and broth to pan.

Combine reserved porcini soaking liquid with toasted flour, stirring with a whisk, and add to pan. Bring to a boil; reduce heat, and simmer, uncovered, for 15 minutes. Add milk; simmer 10 minutes, stirring frequently. Remove from heat; stir in half-and-half and sherry. Place 2 cups soup in a blender; process until smooth. Return pureed soup to pan. Warm soup over low heat for 5 minutes or until thoroughly heated. Divide soup among each of 8 bowls, and sprinkle with parsley, if desired.

Yield: 8 servings (serving size: 1 cup)

NUTRITION PER SERVING: CALORIES 114(24% from fat); FAT 3.1g (sat 1.8g,mono 0.9g,poly 0.1g); PROTEIN 7.1g; CHOLESTEROL 11mg; CALCIUM 72mg; SODIUM 341mg; FIBER 1.9g; IRON 1.9mg; CARBOHYDRATE 13.3g

Kathryn Conrad
Cooking Light, OCTOBER 2004

I talked about this recipe HERE.