two pounds of mushrooms. I used one pound of exotic mushroomsplus half a pound of button mushrooms, and half a pound of baby portabella mushrooms. All mushrooms small diced.
2tablespoonolive oil
one medium onionsmall diced
3garlic clovesminced
one teaspoon of herb de provençe
one ounce of flour
32ouncesvegetable brothor chicken broth if you want more flavor
¼cupof marsala wineor any wine you prefer, red or white.
¼cupmanchego cheese
salt and pepper to taste
fresh parsley for garnish
one pint of heavy creamif you would like to make this a cream of mushroom soup
Instructions
Place a large stock pot on the stove at low to medium heat. I used a 6 quart enameled cast iron dutch oven. Do not over heat the pot, so that it will not smoke once you start cooking.
Small dice or rough chop the mushrooms. Once the mushrooms are ready, make sure the pot is nice and hot by adding 1 tablespoon of olive oil, reserve the rest for later. Olive oil will move fluidly on the pot but not smoke. Add mushrooms.
Cook mushrooms, occasionally turning them with a spoon until the mushrooms have rendered all their liquid and reabsorbed it back. You should get a nutty aroma from the mushrooms once they are cooked through. Meanwhile dice the onions and garlic.
Once the mushrooms are ready, add the onions and garlic. Add the other reserved tablespoon of olive oil if pan is too dry. Cook onions and garlic until translucent and soft.
Add the remainder olive oil, if you did not use it with the onions and garlic, and add the one ounce of flour. Cook the flour until flour turns golden and nutty aroma is prevelent.
With a wooden spoon, deglaze the bottom of the pot with the wine by gently rubbing the spoon on the bottom of the pan and lifting the brown bits off.
Switch the spoon to a whip (or whisk) and begin stirring the contents of the pot as you pour the broth in a steady stream . This will eliminate any clumping of the flour.
Allow the soup to simmer for about 10 minutes. Checking it occasionally. You are looking for the thickness of the soup, and you do not want the contents to stick to the bottom either. If the soup thickens too fast, add more stock or water to thin it. If you desire, add cream in small increments to soup at this point to thin out the soup.
Taste the soup. If your soup taste like flour, cook the soup a bit longer.
To serve, laddle soup into bowls and grate manchego cheese on top. Sprinkle with fresh parsley and serve with a piece ciabbatta and machego toast.