Rustic Cream of Mushroom Soup

Place the dried mushrooms in a bowl and cover them with hot water. Soak them for 30 minutes or until plump. Remove the mushrooms from the bowl of water and set them aside. Strain the mushroom water through a coffee filter into a bowl to remove excess grit. Set the soaking liquid aside.

Tie the sprigs of fresh herbs together in a bundle with a piece of kitchen twine.

In a large pot over medium-high heat, add the oil and the bundle of herbs. As the oil heats up, the herbs will start to infuse it with flavour. After 2 minutes, add the onions. Cook until onions are just starting to brown, 5 minutes. Add the garlic and red pepper flakes, if using, and cook for another minute.

Turn the heat up to high and add the sliced mushrooms. Cook for 10 minutes or until they have released all of their moisture. They will shrink considerably. Once mushrooms are browned, add the white wine and cook, scraping up all the browned bits on the bottom of the pot. Cook until the wine is reduced completely. Add the rehydrated mushrooms and their liquid, beef stock, a few pinches of salt and pepper and simmer over medium heat for 30 minutes. Remove the herbs from the pot and stir in the cream and butter. Heat until the butter is melted. Then use an immersion blender to puree the soup until it’s smooth.

Serve with a drizzle of good olive oil, fresh thyme leaves and crusty bread.

(Recipe adapted from Smitten Kitchen, who in turn adapted it from The Balthazar Cookbook.)