Author Notes
This recipe from my blog was originally intended to be some glorious celebratory feast of a recipe, and yet after a week of work and busy-ness behind me, all I could think of was this soup. It is the antidote to frazzled nerves (actually it probably is with mushrooms' purported anti-inflammatory properties, and loads of lovely vitamin B and D) and just what I felt like tucking into. The soup comprises Portobello or Swiss Brown mushrooms, good quality chicken stock, lots of pungent garlic, thyme, some fresh cream and a wee bit of sherry to give it that extra little somethn' somethn'. Did I mention the fabulousness of the Gruyere and Onion Jam pan-toastie (sweet onions, melty cheese, toasty bread)....yep, happy days in my favourite snuggy jumper and with a lovely glass of red! —From The Kitchen
Ingredients
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50g
butter
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1
red onion, peeled and roughly chopped
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sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
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4
big garlic cloves, crushed
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600g
Portobello mushroms, sliced
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5
sprigs thyme
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2
bay leaves
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5 cups
good quality chicken stock
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1/2 cup
cream
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3 tablespoons
cream
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2 tablespoons
sherry
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4
small brown mushrooms, thinly sliced
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1 tablespoon
olive oil
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8
slices good quality wholemeal bread
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1 1/2 cups
Caramelised onions / onion jam
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3 tablespoons
butter
Directions
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Heat the butter in a large heavy-based saucepan and cook onions with sea salt and pepper over a medium/gentle heat for 10 minutes or until softened. Add garlic, mushrooms, thyme and bay leaves. Cook for a further 15 minutes over a medium heat, stirring every few minutes until mushrooms are pretty well cooked.
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Add stock, bring to a boil then reduce to a simmer for half an hour. Add cream, milk and sherry and cook a further 2 minutes. Take off the heat, remove thyme stalks (the leaves will have all dropped off) and bay leaves. transfer to a food processor and whiz until combined.
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When ready to serve taste for seasoning, then in a small fry pan cook extra small mushrooms in olive oil over a medium heat for about 3-4 minutes or until almost crispy. Drizzle with a little extra cream, garnish with mushrooms and optional micro greens and serve with Gruyere and caramelised onion toasties.
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While soup is heating heat too large fry pans. Butter bread and put 4 slices in (2 in each pan), buttered-side down. Top with evenly divided caramelised onions and Gruyere cheese, and finally the extra bread slices, butter-side up. When toasties are golden on the bottom, carefully flip and cook the other side - about 5-6 minutes all up. Deliciousness.
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