Paris Mushroom Soup from Dorie Greenspan

Name: Paris Mushroom Soup from Dorie Greenspan
Prep time: 25 min
Cook time: 30 min
Total time: 55 min
Ingredients: PARIS MUSHROOM SOUP; Prep 25 minutes Cook: 30 minutes; Makes: 6 servings; 2 tablespoons butter; 1-1/2 large onions (coarsely chopped); 3 large cloves garlic (coarsely chopped); Salt and freshly ground white pepper; 1-1/2 pounds white mushrooms (trimmed, sliced); 2 parsley sprigs; 1 rosemary sprig; 1/3 cup dry white wine; 6 cups chicken broth or water; Creme fraiche (sour cream or yogurt, optional)

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Late yesterday afternoon I saw someone tweet about the fantastic mushroom soup she was making from Dorie Greenspan’s book ‘Around My French Table’ (pp 72-73)) and sure enough it was for French Fridays with Dorie and I was inspired. Inspired not only because I was hungry after being on the go all day without lunch but it helped that I had fresh mushrooms in the fridge and anticipated I would have the ingredients for a soup…so glad that but for parsley I did have everything including the book and it was literally within minutes that I had chopped onions and garlic sizzling in a pot.

This dish was so simple; sauteed onions, garlic and mushrooms combined with white wine, rosemary and chicken broth. Simple and simply divine. I might normally not have rosemary readily available but I’ve had great success with a small rosemary ‘tree’ I bought at Whole Foods for the holidays. It seems to rather like the window box above my kitchen sink and is growing like crazy so I was delighted to have a recipe for mushroom soup using one of my favorite herbs and killed the proverbial two birds with one stone by giving the rosemary a little trim!

Dorie suggests serving the soup as they do at the Paris bistro, Les Papilles, on top of a salad comprised of raw mushrooms, chives, parsley, salt, pepper and then finishing with dollop of crème fraîche on top. I didn’t do the salad, opting instead to top the soup with some quickly sautèed mushrooms and in lieu of crème fraîche a dollop of Greek yogurt. An amazing mouthful of flavor yet filled with very little fat; it felt like a great soup to start the New Year with when so many of us want to get ourselves back into an après holiday routine with lighter and healthier fare.

The ONLY thing I did that put a different spin on Dorie’s recipe was to add a piece of rind from the last piece of Parmesan that I had purchased. I can’t stand to pitch that hard piece of cheese that I cut off before using Parmesan so I save those pieces in a container that I store in the freezer. I’ve found that it’s a great addition to soups, sauces and stews so I put a nice chunk in while the broth simmered and though subtle I could sure tell and loved the addition!

I used my immersion blender when it came time to blend the ingredients into soup form. It was the perfect instrument for me with the end result being not a totally smooth consistency but having some substance to the mouth-feel. Sort of like my mashed potatoes, I like more rustic versions!

From thought to plate…30 minutes, and it was simply FANTASTIC!

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