Mushroom and Creme Fraiche Soup

Mushroom and Creme Fraiche Soup

This is yummy soup – very full of fat though, even though it’s vegetarian. So I don’t make it too often but I really enjoy it when I do. If you like a good mix of sharp and creaminess you should love this too.

abitmorvegAnother abitmoreveg recipe, this time for a lovely creamy and slightly sour mushroom soup. I really love it but I don’t make it very often because it’s loaded with butter and crème fraîche, which is probably what makes it so tasty… In case you’re wondering, yes you can use plain ordinary field mushrooms in this recipe they work just as well – and cook a little faster than chestnut mushrooms.

mushroom soup and scones
A bowl of mushroom and creme fraiche soup with tomato and olive wholemeal scones, providing a healthy balance to this creamy soup.

I’ve mentioned how good mushrooms are before, they are rich in in iron, are also a source of potassium, selenium, copper, zinc and they are full of fibre. In addition to all this they may help boost your immune system. Many varieties of mushrooms contain beta-glucans. Beta-glucans are sugars that are found in the cell walls of bacteria, fungi (e.g. mushrooms), yeasts, algae, lichens, and plants, such as oats and barley, and it is thought that they may improve the functioning of your immune system.

A sour and creamy mushroom soup. Perfect for bitter witches ; )
A sour and creamy mushroom soup. Perfect for bitter witches ; )

Garlic is also supposed to be good for your immune system. It is believed that the organo-sulfur compounds in garlic are what gives it its healing properties. Crushing garlic releases an enzyme called alliinase. Alliinase then leads to the formation of allicin which is an organo-sulfur compound. Heating can reduce the amount of allicin in garlic but apparently if you leave the garlic be for 10 minutes after crushing it the enzyme will have done its work and so you will still get a decent amount of organo-sulfur goodness in your cooked dish. You can find a bit more information on this here.

I add a good bit of butter and crème fraîche to this mushroom soup. It seems that a lot of people have positive things to say about butter. I maybe visited the wrong sites when looking up the health benefits of crème fraîche as most websites said that it should only be consumed in moderation. I think that anything with saturated fat should be consumed in moderation. Both butter and crème fraîche are high in saturated fat but they also add a lot of taste and flavour to a dish – and that can’t be so bad, provided it’s natural and part of a balanced diet, right?

If you’re not a fan of crème fraîche or mustard, replace them both with 50 – 75ml of double cream.

ingrients for mushroom soup
Mushrooms, celery, onions, butter, creme fraiche, stock, flour (gluten-free if necessary), garlic, parsley, nutmeg, salt and pepper. And Dijon mustard.
minced onion and celery
This recipe starts with a base of minced celery and onion gently fried in butter. Use the leafy, whiter inner celery sticks as they are sweeter but also have a slightly stronger parsley-like taste.
add mustard
Don’t forget the mustard!

Mushroom and Creme Fraiche Soup

Serves 2

Mushroom and Creme Fraiche Soup

Ingredients

  • 50g salted butter, diced
  • 4 leafy celery sticks
  • 1 mild medium-sized onion
  • 250g chestnut mushrooms, sliced
  • 125g button mushrooms, quartered
  • 4 large garlic cloves, crushed
  • 1 teaspoon dried parsley
  • salt & pepper
  • 1 heaped tablespoon white flour (plus 1 teaspoon if using gluten-free flour)
  • 600ml hot vegetable stock
  • 2 generous tablespoons crème fraîche
  • generous pinch freshly grated nutmeg
  • 1 teaspoon dijon mustard

Instructions

  1. Mince the celery and onion in a food mixer.
  2. Melt the butter on a gentle heat in a deep saucepan. Stir in the the onion and celery. Cover and leave for 5 minutes.
  3. Add the mushrooms, garlic, parsley, salt and pepper and stir them in well so that mushrooms are all well coated in all the other ingredients. Turn up the heat a little. Cover and leave for 20 minutes or until the mushrooms are all cooked.
  4. When the mushrooms are done, stir in the flour. Stir the flour in well and keep stirring it around for 2 – 3 minutes to ensure the flour is cooked thoroughly – otherwise your soup may taste doughy.
  5. Stir in a little of the stock making sure that the flour blends in well. Then add the rest of the stock, turn up the heat and bring to the boil. You will need to keep stirring to avoid it sticking and burning at the bottom. As it is boiling it should thicken just a little. Remove from the heat and allow it to cool a little.
  6. Stir in the crème fraîche, mustard and nutmeg.
http://twimii.com/recipes/mushroom-and-creme-fraiche-soup/

mushroom creme fraiche soup
The original photo of the soup. To me this soup looks great in these large cups – but it never seems to show in the photos…
Mushroom and creme fraiche soup. Yummy.
Mushroom and creme fraiche soup. Yummy.