Barefoot Bloggers Cream of Wild Mushroom Soup

It's the last Thursday of the month and that means one thing-Barefoot Blogger Day! Barefoot Thursday comes twice a month and it’s a day when food bloggers everywhere (well about 100 bloggers right now) prepare a recipe created by Ina Garten, The Barefoot Contessa. Why don’t you join in?

Today's recipe for Cream of Wild Mushroom Soup was selected by Chelle of Brown Eyed Baker. I love this selection! Thank you, Chelle. I've made a few adjustments "supermarket style"-that is, the supermarket where I purchased my ingredients from did not have loose wild mushrooms only the packaged kind so I've adapted the recipe to match up with the package sizes available. (Sorry, Whole Foods was not on the way home from the gym). I had planned on halving the recipe anyway because as much as I love mushrooms, my kids despise them. When they grow up I'm sure they'll love them as much as I do, but for now-no soup for them.

I added a tasty Cayenne Peppered Tomato Jarlsberg Crouton which I think went really well (I could have eaten two of those, but I controlled myself).

Oh, and I didn't have any white wine so I used Marsala wine (leftover from the Chicken Marsala) with great results. Also, if you like your soup less chunky feel free to use a hand blender to smooth it out a bit, or transfer half the soup to a regular blender, blend a bit then pour back into the soup. (Be careful using a blender with hot soup-it can splatter and make a mess-I've done it...it's not pretty).

Ina's original recipe is here...below is my smaller-portion-supermarket-packaging version.

Creamy Wild Mushroom Soup with Cayenne Pepper Tomato Jarlsberg Croutons

(adapted from The Barefoot Contessa's Cream of Wild Mushroom Soup)

1 (3.5 ounce) package Shiitake mushrooms

1 (3.5 ounce) package Baby Bella mushrooms

2 teaspoons extra virgin olive oil

3 tablespoons butter

2 shallots, coarsely chopped

1/2 carrot, chopped

1 sprig of thyme plus 1/2 teaspoon minced thyme leaves

kosher salt

freshly ground black pepper

1 cup of chopped leeks (green and white parts)

2 tablespoons flour

1/2 cup Marsala wine

1 cup half and half

Croutons:

3 (1/2 inch thick) slices French Bread

3 slices of Jarlsberg cheese

1/4 cup diced tomatoes

1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper

1/4 teaspoon salt

pinch of fresh thyme

Clean the mushrooms by rubbing gently with a paper towel. Separate the stems, trim off any bad parts and coarsely chop the stems. Slice the mushroom caps 1/4 inch thick and cut into bite size pieces.

To make the stock, heat the olive oil and 1 tablespoon of the butter in a large pot. Add the chopped mushroom stems, the shallot, carrot, the sprig of thyme, salt and pepper; cook over medium low heat for 10 to 15 minutes, until the vegetables are soft. Add 4 cups water, bring to a boil and reduce the heat and simmer uncovered for 30 minutes. Strain, reserving the liquid.

Meanwhile in another large pot, heat the remaining tablespoon of butter and add the leeks. Cook over low heat for 15 minutes until they begin to brown. Stir in the sliced mushroom caps and cook for 10 minutes or until they are browned and tender. Stir in the flour and cook for 1 minute. Add the Marsala wine and stir for another minute, scraping the bottom of the pot. Add the mushroom stock, minced thyme leaves, 3/4 teaspoon of salt and 1/4 teaspoon of pepper and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer for 15 minutes. Stir in the half and half, season to taste and heat through, but do not boil. Serve hot.

To prepare the crouton, preheat oven to 425 degrees. Arrange the bread slices in a single layer on a baking sheet. Trim the cheese to fit the bread slices and layer the cheese on each bread slice. Bake in the oven until melted, about 5 minutes. Stir together the tomatoes, cayenne pepper, salt and thyme. Spoon the tomatoes over the cheese. Serve warm with the mushroom soup.