Last night Chef Bill realized there was a package of Baby Bella mushrooms in the refrigerator just waiting for a purpose. Knowing I love soup, he got out the Vita-Mix plus a few necessary ingredients and got to work. 30 minutes later I was tasting the most sublime ‘cream’ of mushroom soup of my life. Velvety smooth thanks to the Vita-Mix (our new toy that we never get tired of playing with), loaded with flavor, and just a hint of creaminess, and not in a heavy-handed way, a la cow cream. The photo does not do this sublime soup justice. ‘Sigh.’ You’ll just have to make a batch to see what I mean. Enjoy!
Clean Cream of Mushroom Soup
1 pound mushrooms, preferable baby bella’s or cremini
3 cups beef stock
1 tablespoon chopped fresh thyme
1/8th teaspoon white pepper
½ teaspoon Kosher salt
¼ cup unsalted butter or olive oil
1 tablespoon truffle oil (optional)
4 ounces mild, whipped chevre at room temperature (goat cheese)
Note: You’ll need a food processor or Vita-Mix to make this
Cut mushrooms in half and saute in butter or olive oil on medium heat in a large sauce pan or wok for about 10 minutes, until slightly brown. Add thyme and a cup of the beef stock to the pan and simmer on very low for about 15 minutes (the stock should be lightly bubbling). Add remainder of stock after 15 minutes. Bring to a boil and shut heat off. Transfer to a Vita-Mix and blend until smooth, about a minute. Add back to stock pot or wok and whisk in chevre until smooth. If mixture is too thick, incrementally thin with additional stock until desired consistency is reached. Drizzle with truffle oil and serve.
This is fantastic plain, but it also lends itself to the addition of rice, soup pasta, or chunks of leftover steak or roast. Last night I ate mine with pieces of leftover Filet Mignon – So superb the combination. Bon Appetit!
Creamy texture – Clean flavor!
