French Onion And Wild Mushroom Soup Food

BEAUTIFUL BAKED FRENCH ONION AND MUSHROOM SOUP

Steps:

• Cut onions in half lengthwise and thinly slice into half moon shapes.
• Pour olive oil into a large pot and heat to one notch over low. Add onions and sprinkle them with salt. Cover and let onions sweat for 15 minutes. Give onions a quick stir, cover and let sweat for another 15 minutes.
• While onions are cooking, thinly slice your mushrooms, mince your garlic and preheat oven to 375°F.
• Get 4 ovenproof bowls and place face-down on the pie crust. Cut 4 large circles out of pie crust, about 1" bigger than the size of your bowl. They do NOT have to be perfect circles - they look more rustic if the edges are jagged.
• When onions are done sweating, uncover, turn heat to medium and brown slightly while stirring frequently for about 10 minutes. Add mushrooms, garlic, sherry, balsamic vinegar, Worcestershire sauce, beef broth, bay leaf, and black pepper. Bring to a boil, turn down to simmer for ½ hour or more.
• Remove bay leaf. Pour soup evenly into bowls and cover each bowl with a crust. The crust should not be touching the soup. Poke 1 small hole in the middle of each crust. Bake for 12 minutes. Crust should be just golden.
• Remove, and sprinkle each bowl evenly with Swiss cheese. Put back in the oven for about 3 minutes, until cheese has just melted.
• Serve immediately and let your guests cut into the crunchy crust with their spoons and the cheese will melt into the soup.

WILD MUSHROOM SOUP WITH CHESTNUTS AND ROASTED FENNEL

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
• Put the fennel halves, cut-side up, in a baking dish and drizzle with enough olive oil to come up half-way; season with a generous amount of salt and pepper. Roast for 30 minutes or until completely tender - the roasted fennel is the base of the soup, so it's important the flesh is soft enough to be cut with a spoon. Reserve until ready to serve.
• In a large pot, melt the butter over medium flame, add the onion and garlic, and saute for 4 minutes until translucent. Toss the thyme into the pan, along with the mushrooms, season with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring, for 10 to 15 minutes, until the mushrooms give off their liquid. Add the chestnuts and cook for a few more minutes until they have some nice color on them. Remove about 1 cup of the mixture to save as a garnish for the soup.
• Pour the stock into the pot and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer, uncovered, for 15 minutes, stirring now and then. Remove from the heat and puree the soup until completely smooth, using a handheld or regular blender. Stir in the cream to make the soup even richer, and simmer gently for 5 minutes. Taste for salt and pepper.
• To serve: Ladle the soup into soup bowls; garnish each serving with a bit of the reserved mushrooms and chestnuts, a roasted fennel half, and a sprinkle of chopped chives.

CREAM OF WILD MUSHROOM SOUP

Steps:

• Clean the mushrooms by wiping them with a dry paper towel. Don't wash them! Separate the stems, trim off any bad parts, and coarsely chop the stems. Slice the mushroom caps 1/4-inch thick and, if they are big, cut them into bite-sized pieces. Set aside.
• To make the stock, heat the olive oil and 1 tablespoon of the butter in a large pot. Add the chopped mushroom stems, the onion, carrot, the sprig of thyme, 1 teaspoon salt, and 1/2 teaspoon pepper and cook over medium-low heat for 10 to 15 minutes, until the vegetables are soft. Add 6 cups water, bring to a boil, reduce the heat, and simmer uncovered for 30 minutes. Strain, reserving the liquid. You should have about 4 1/2 cups of stock. If not, add some water.
• Meanwhile, in another large pot, heat the remaining 1/4 pound of butter and add the leeks. Cook over low heat for 15 to 20 minutes, until the leeks begin to brown. Add the sliced mushroom caps and cook for 10 minutes, or until they are browned and tender. Add the flour and cook for 1 minute. Add the white wine and stir for another minute, scraping the bottom of the pot. Add the mushroom stock, minced thyme leaves, 1 1/2 teaspoons salt, and 1 teaspoon pepper and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer for 15 minutes. Add the half-and-half, cream, and parsley, season with salt and pepper, to taste, and heat through but do not boil. Serve hot.

FRENCH ONION AND WILD MUSHROOM SOUP

Steps:

• In a heavy soup pot, melt the butter with the olive oil, 2 turns of the pan, over medium-heat. Stir in the onions, bay leaf and thyme. Season with salt and pepper. Cook until the onions are softened and browned, 25 minutes.
• Meanwhile, in a large saucepan, bring the chicken broth, mushrooms and 2 cups water to a boil. Lower the heat and simmer for 15 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, remove the mushrooms and slice.
• Preheat the broiler. Pour the sherry into the onions and cook over medium heat, scraping up any browned bits. Stir in the mushrooms and hot broth.
• Toast the bread under the broiler, rub with the garlic and top with the cheese. Broil until melted. Ladle the soup into bowls and serve with the toasts.

MUSHROOM ONION SOUP

Steps:

• Trim mushroom stems level with the caps; finely chop stems and thinly slice caps. , In a large saucepan, melt butter; add mushrooms and onions. Cook and stir over low heat for 5 minutes. Blend in flour; add broth, salt if desired, and pepper. Cook and stir until mixture comes to a boil. Reduce heat. Add rice and bay leaf; cover and simmer until the rice is tender, 15-20 minutes. Discard bay leaf. Sprinkle with parsley.