Season with Spice – Mushroom Soup

This was my first time making mushroom soup. I’ve had the stuff in the can, and mysterious mushroom soup from the vats at buffets and they’ve always been pretty…ok. I love mushrooms and I’ve been trying to work on my soup game. Why not try to make a soup that has one star…the mushroom. 

I found the recipe on Pinterest (Thankkk youuuu!) I judged the complexity by looking at the ingredients list and how many steps it took to complete the soup. It looked manageable so I went for it. I figured if I completely messed up, I could cook up some pasta and it could be like a mushroom sauce or something. Which in the end it doubled as because it was good as a soup AND a sauce…the recipe is legit…too legit to quit. 

What You’ll Need
This is the original recipe that serves 2…I doubled it when I made it. 

• 2 cups (16 oz)  fresh mushrooms – cleaned and chopped finely (Sooo I was lazy and I bought the precut mushrooms and washed them at home. I didn’t even cut them any further cauuuuse I didn’t feel like it. Plus since I doubled the recipe that was 32 oz. of mushrooms. No one has time to cut all those mushrooms further)
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 3-4 cloves garlic – chopped
• 1 tbsp butter
• 1/2 tbsp chopped fresh thyme or 1/4-1/2 teaspoon of dried thyme (I rounded up since it’s the dried stuff)
• 1 – 2 bay leaves 
• 2 tsp Worcestershire sauce
• 1 cup chicken or vegetable stock ( I used chicken for that extra OOMPH of flavor)
• 1 tbsp flour dissolved in 1 tbsp water  (As you see in the picture it didn’t dissolve…it became a paste. Make sure it’s a liquid cause my paste just kinda cooked in the hot liquid)
• Salt to taste (REMEMBER TO TASTE!)
• 1/2 cup heavy cream
• 1/2 cup milk (skim milk is fine)
• Dash of  nutmeg
• Freshly ground black pepper to taste
• Fresh parsley or thyme for garnish (I didn’t do this part..I garnished with a baguette)

What to Do

1. Heat olive oil in a sauce pan. Add butter and lightly sauté garlic on medium heat. (FAT ON FAT!!! YUM!!) 
2.  Add in mushrooms, thyme, bay leaf and Worcestershire sauce. Cook over medium heat for 5 minutes, or until the moisture from the mushrooms disappears. (Since I doubled the recipe it took a LONG TIME for all the liquid to disappear…look at the pictures, but eventually it happens. I was going to give up, don’t give up!) 
3.  Add in chicken broth. Stir occasionally until broth boils, then reduce heat and simmer for 10 minutes. 
4. Add diluted flour in, and stir constantly (while simmering) until the mixture thickens.
5. Season with salt and nutmeg. Taste and adjust seasoning. 
6. Finally, add milk and heavy cream, and bring to a simmer. Turn heat off.
7. Serve hot in your soup bowl. Add freshly ground black pepper. Garnish with your baguette! hahah