Cookbooks
By Patricia Wells
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I call this crowd-pleasing soup my magic recipe. It is so amazing that so few ingredients—and a soup made in a matter of minutes—can have so much depth of flavor. It really is a fine example of the miracles of infusion. The dried cèpe (porcini) mushroom powder packs a maximum of fragrance and flavor and takes well to many variations: Pair it with paper-thin slices of raw domestic mushrooms or seared domestic or wild mushrooms showered in the bowl at serving time; prepare with dried morel powder in place of cèpes; top with thin slices of raw black truffles; or add a dollop of mushroom-powder- infused whipped cream.
Ingredients
8 servings
For the Cèpe Mushroom Powder:
2 ounces (30 g) best-quality dried cèpe (porcini) mushrooms (or substitute dried morels)
For the soup:
2 cups (500 ml) heavy cream
2 tablespoons Cèpe Mushroom Powder
1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt
3 cups (750 ml) chicken stock or vegetable stock
Chopped fresh chives, for garnish
Extra-virgin olive oil or chive oil, for garnish
Special Equipment
An electric spice mill; a small jar with a lid; a large jar with a lid; a 3-quart (3 l) heavy-duty saucepan with a lid; 8 warmed, shallow soup bowls.
Preparation
For the Cèpe Mushroom Powder:
Step 1
Coarsely chop the dried mushrooms or cut them into pieces with scissors. Working in batches, grind them to a fine powder in the spice mill. [Makes 1/2 cup (8 tablespoons) powder.]
For the soup:
Step 2
If time permits, combine the cream and 2 tablespoons mushroom powder in a jar, seal, and refrigerate for 24 hours to infuse the cream with the mushroom flavor and aroma. (Alternatively, combine the cream and mushroom powder in the heavy-duty saucepan, bring just to a simmer, cover, remove from the heat, and set aside for 30 minutes to infuse the cream.)
Step 3
At serving time, in heavy-duty saucepan, combine the infused cream, salt, and stock and bring to a gentle simmer over medium heat. Remove from the heat and taste for seasoning.
Step 4
Serve in the warmed soup bowls, garnished with chives and a drizzle of oil.
Do Ahead
Step 5
The soup can be prepared up to 3 days in advance and stored in airtight containers in the refrigerator.
Variations:
Step 6
Add sliced raw domestic or wild mushrooms to the soup and cook for several minutes; add grilled, sliced fresh cèpes or domestic mushrooms; add truffle matchsticks at serving time.
From My Master Recipes: 165 Recipes to Inspire Confidence in the Kitchen © 2017 by Patricia Wells. Buy the full book from HarperCollins or from Amazon.Reprinted with permission from HarperCollins.
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Reviews (6)
Back to TopTriangleI made this tonight for my husband and I to sip on out of mugs while we greeted trick or treaters over several hours. It was delicious, packed with umami, and very satisfying. I bought dried cèpe that came from Serbia and they were fragrant and flavorful. I did not enjoy grinding them to powder and may consider buying cèpe powder (already ground) down the road, though I would be sad if it was somehow not as flavorful. The only change, or tweak, I made was to thinly slice a handful of cremini mushrooms and sautée them over fairly high heat until they were nicely browned. I removed them from the heat, very lightly salted them, threw in two cloves of garlic and sautéed them very briefly and then added all of that directly to the waiting saucepan of cream, mushroom powder, and broth. I simmered all of that on low to thicken the cream very slightly and allow the cooked mushrooms to infuse the cream a bit. At the last minute I did end up using an immersion blender to make everything smooth though I don’t know that it was necessary. I tasted to adjust for seasoning but all I can say is that it was amazeballs. Truly.Sadly, I can’t say how it tasted without the sautéed mushrooms and garlic added but I am pretty sure it would have been really great as well.
Anonymous
Seattle
11/1/2022
Excellent, best as small servings since it is so rich.
jansan1
Orangge County, CA.
2/2/2021
We used a mixture of generic dried mushrooms and morels. The earthy flavor made it shine. My husband suggested adding garlic next time we make it...so easy to make to taste.
marydecou
Grand Rapids, MI
3/18/2019
I substituted coconut cream for the heavy cream since I needed a dairy free option. It was yummy. I also used beef broth since I had just made a batch. I added saute'd bella mushrooms as well as lemon juice, Himalayan salt, green onion. It was good and I'll make it again.
kelli_doty
California
1/11/2019
This is a winner. I probably only needed .5 oz of dried porcini to make 2 tbsp.
Anonymous
Portland, OR
5/15/2017
Rich, creamy, delicious! Has a very nice texture and a simplicity to making it. Have made it at least ten times and it continues to be a winter favourite year after year. Use dried mushrooms (The Wild Mushroom Co.) that are sold seasonally at Costco, in the tall plastic container, every fall. Perfect après-ski snack on winter ski getaways.
missstark
Port Moody BC
1/9/2024
TagsSoupSoup/StewPorcini MushroomMushroomVegetableStarterDinnerNut FreeGluten FreeVegetarianEasyMake AheadSimmerFood ProcessorBlenderCookbooksHarper Collins
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