Comments are closed.
Mushroom Chestnut Soup with Cognac Cream
Mushroom Chestnut Soup with Cognac Cream and Frizzled Shallots!
Yes, this was intended as a holiday recipe. Yes, the season ran away with me, and I missed getting to you in time. But YES, this is a fabulously warm, comforting, cozy, and MEATLESS soup to make all winter long, and I want you to have it this weekend.
Fragrant with leeks, onions, and garlic…richly earthy with a medley of mushrooms and sweet chestnuts…drizzled with a dijon cognac cream and topped with crispy mushrooms, shallots, more chestnuts and fresh parsley…carnivores be warned: it’s perfect.
Mushroom Chestnut Soup with Cognac Cream
Prep: 30 minutes
Cook: 1 hour 20 minutes
Serves: 6
INGREDIENTS
Soup:
1/2 ounce dried porcini mushrooms
I could not find porcini mushrooms, so I substituted with 2 cups of fresh shitake mushrooms which add amazing if slightly less funky flavor.
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
2 leeks, dark green parts discarded, cleaned and thinly sliced
1 pound white button mushrooms, stems trimmed and thinly sliced
2 celery stalks, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 teaspoons fresh thyme leaves
½ cup dry white wine
1 ½ cups cooked chestnuts, chopped
4 cups chicken or veg stock or water
2 tablespoons fresh parsley, chopped to garnish
Cognac Cream:
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
1 shallot, minced
½ cup heavy cream
3 tablespoons cognac
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
2 tablespoon unsalted butter
2 tablespoons crème fraiche
1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley
Kosher salt to taste
Crispy Mushroom Topping:
3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
8 ounces maitake mushrooms (hen of the woods mushrooms)
1 teaspoon fresh thyme leaves
½ cup raw walnuts
2 shallots, thinly sliced into rings
More chestnuts, thinly sliced – optional
INSTRUCTIONS
For the Soup:
•In a heatproof bowl add the porcini mushrooms. Pour over boiling water and allow to rehydrate for 10 minutes. Once tender, chop the mushroom and reserve ½ cup of the porcini liquid.
•In a large Dutch oven or heavy-bottomed pot, add the butter and olive oil and heat over medium. Add the leeks, button mushrooms, porcinis, celery, and garlic. Cook for 8 to 10 minutes until the vegetables have softened and mushrooms are tender. Add the thyme during the last minute of cooking. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
•Deglaze the pot with the white wine, porcini mushroom liquid, and add the cooked chestnuts. Allow the wine to simmer and reduce by half. Add the stock or water and bring to a simmer over medium-high heat.
•Allow everything to cook for 15 to 20 minutes and season with salt and pepper to taste. Using an immersion blender or high-speed vented blender working in batches, blend the soup until smooth. Keep warm on the stove.
•Make the Cognac Cream: In a medium saucepan, add the olive oil and place over medium heat. Add the shallot and cook for 2 minutes until softened. Add the heavy cream and bring to a simmer over medium-low heat.
•Remove the saucepan from the stove, add the cognac and stir to combine. Return the saucepan to medium-low heat and stand back. If the cognac ignites, remove the pan from the heat and allow it to extinguish.
•Allow the cream to reduce by about a third and thicken slightly, 3 to 4 minutes. Add the mustard and butter and whisk to combine.
•Remove the heavy cream mixture to a small bowl and allow to cool for 10 minutes. Whisk in the crème fraiche and parsley. Set aside.
Make the Crispy Mushroom Topping:
•Preheat the air fryer or oven to 425ºF according to the manufacturer’s instructions (alternatively you can do this in a regular oven too).
•In a large bowl toss the maitake mushrooms and shallots with olive oil and thyme and season with salt. Add to the air fryer basket or to a cookie tray and roast or airfry until mushrooms are nicely crispy and shallots are lightly caramelized, 8-10 minutes. Check every few minutes as the gap between perfectly cooked and burned is tiny!
•To Serve: Ladle the soup into bowls, add a drizzle of the cognac cream and top with the crispy mushrooms. Garnish with parsley.
Note: In the regular oven preheated to 425ºF, roast the mushrooms and shallots for 15 to 20 minutes, adding the walnuts 5 minutes before finished roasting.
Note: You can also use sliced cremini mushrooms, they will take about 5 to 8 minutes in the air fryer to crisp up before adding the walnuts.
COMMENTS