Cream of Mushroom Soup with Sherry

The soup making side of me is thrilled that today is cold, windy, and rainy as finally my soup selling season has returned.  To celebrate, I have turned on the heating and defrosted a pot of mushroom soup that didn't sell at Alresford Country Market a few weeks ago.  Warm inside and out, with a Indian Butter Chicken blipping away in the slow cooker, I am planning my autumnal offering for this week's market.

This particular soup was made with reduced mushrooms from my local greengrocer.  Whenever I saw a reduced bag I would buy them, take them home and fry them and then freeze them when cool so that I built up 600g over a few weeks.

Cream of Mushroom Soup

Serves 6
 

600g mushrooms
2 cloves of garlic
1 onion
1 tbsp olive oil
A few sprigs of thyme
Chicken or vegetable stock cube
1 shot glass sherry (optional)
1l boiled water
100ml double cream
Salt & Pepper to taste

Peel and roughly chop the onion and garlic and fry in a big saucepan with the olive oil for a few minutes.  Add the mushrooms which have been brushed with kitchen paper to remove any soil and roughly chopped.  Fry over a gently heat until the moisture has come out of the mushrooms and then boiled away. 

When the pan starts to dry out for the second time add the sherry if using, then the hot water, the thyme leaves stripped from their stalks and the crumbled stock cube.  Bring the boil and then simmer with a lid on for 20 minutes.

After 20 minutes blitz in a liquidiser or with a stick blender, adding the cream and season to taste.  The colour may not look very appetising, but I can assure you it tastes delicious and hearty especially with the sherry!