This is the best cream of mushroom soup I've ever had. I have already made this recipe 4 times this winter season. A warm soup on a cold day is always a good thing. This soup is extra creamy made with heavy cream and a variety of mushrooms to bring on layers of flavors. Don't hesitate to make this soup again and again.
I was looking for a good soup that I could make without a lot of fuss. For some reason people have been sleeping on soup as a meal. I mean soup is better than just as a two-fer to go with a salad or sandwich for a lunch meal. When it's cold outside and snowing it's nothing like some delicious soup to warm your soul. And there's more kinds of soup than chicken noodle. Even more to do with "cream of something" soup than to use as an ingredient of another recipe. If you've got a great cream of soup, it can stand alone!
If you are lucky enough to have a variety of mushrooms available to you in your grocery store, please grab as many different varieties as you can to make this recipe. If you only have baby portabella or crimini mushrooms available that will be okay. I used a mix of baby portabella (I used this the most because it's most affordable), maitake, oyster, shiitake, and Hen of the Woods mushrooms. I used a pound of the more affordable crimini mushrooms and I mixed the other mushrooms to total a full pound. So I made this recipe with 2 pounds of mushrooms.
I don't like my mushroom soup to be chunky. I like the smooth creaminess of a puree. But if you like, you can saute more of your mushroom mix at the beginning to stir back into your soup after you have added in the heavy cream. This will make for a more chunky cream of mushroom soup.
You can find mushrooms year around in the grocery store. They peak in the fall and winter seasons so you can really find some exotic varieties during that time. You want to choose mushrooms that are firm and evenly colored. Avoid mushrooms that are soft, damp, or smell like mildew. These are about to go bad. You can store your mushrooms in the fridge for a couple of days but take them out of any plastic bags. Leaving them in plastic bags will make them go bad quicker.
Cream of Mushroom Soup
Serves 6
Ingredients
5 Tbsp Olive oil, divided
1 lb Crimini mushrooms, sliced
1 lb mixed mushrooms, sliced (maitake, shiitake, oyster, Hen of the Woods or whatever you can find)
4 Tbsp Unsalted butter
1 Yellow Onion, diced
6 cloves garlic, minced
2 Tbsp Fresh thyme, divided
1 tsp Italian seasoning
1/2 Cup Dry sherry
3/4 Cup All Purpose flour
6 Cups Chicken stock (or vegetable stock)
1 Cup Heavy cream
1/2 tsp Soy Sauce
Salt and Pepper, to taste
Steps
1. Heat olive oil in a large heavy pot like a Dutch oven or a large soup pot. Once hot, add in about 2 handfuls of a mix crimini mushrooms and mixed mushrooms. Season with salt and pepper to taste and saute until golden brown, about 6 - 8 minutes. Set aside to top soup.
2. Add in 3 Tbsp of olive oil and 2 Tbsp of butter to your pot. Once butter has melted, add in diced onions, 3 cloves of garlic and saute 1 - 2 minutes until onions are soft and garlic is fragrant.
3. Add in the remaining mushrooms, 1 Tbsp of fresh thyme, Italian seasoning, and salt and pepper to taste. Saute 15 - 18 minutes until mushrooms are soft and golden brown and most of the liquid is gone.
4. Add in dry sherry, remaining garlic, and the remaining thyme and allow liquid to reduce to almost completely gone, about 2 - 5 minutes.
5. Stir in flour and cook for 1 minute. (It may clump and look messy but don't panic. It's okay)
6. Slowly whisk in chicken stock. Whisk constantly while adding to prevent lumps.
7. Bring to a simmer and cook for about 10 minutes until the soup thickens.
8. Transfer to a blender or use an immersion blender and blend until pureed. If using a blender, you may have to blend in batches.
9. Transfer back to your soup pot and add in heavy cream.
10. Turn heat on low to warm soup, season with soy sauce (or salt) and pepper to taste. Add any additional thyme if needed.
11. Top each serving with sauteed mushrooms that were set aside and enjoy!