SUNDAY NIGHT PORTOBELLO MUSHROOM SOUP
WITH GRUYERE & ONION JAM TOASTIES
Our new favourite blog for a range of different recipes is Sarah Tuck's From the Kitchen.
From her Rhubarb and Raspberry Tart to her 'Fabulous Fish Pie' and 'Devil Salad', Sarah's blog offers a beautifully presented selection of recipes, that not only inspires amateur cooks but offers some fantastic ideas for plating and presentation.
Here is one of her delicious creations from her 'Winter' recipes to enjoy with a snuggly jumper and a glass of red.
Ingredients
50g butter
1 red onion, peeled and toughly chopped
sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
4 big fat garlic cloves, crushed
600g Portobello mushrooms (or a mix of your favourites), sliced
5 sprigs thyme + 1 sprig lemon thyme (optional)
2 bay leaves
5 cups good quality chicken stock (homemade if you have it)
1/2 cup cream plus 3 tbsp extra
1/2 cup whole milk
2 tbsp sherry
4 small brown mushrooms extra, thinly sliced
1 tbsp olive oil
1/3 cup micro-greens (mine were micro-purples!)
Toasties:
8 slices good quality wholegrain bread
150g Gruyere cheese, grated
1 1/2 cups caramelised onions / Onion jam
3 tbsp butter
Method
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. 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. 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. Serves 4
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.
Website: http://fromthekitchen.co.nz