Waiter, there is a fungus in my soup!

The Chef and I are mushroom people. It's one of those things- you either are or you aren't. We love mushrooms of all kinds. We have been known to wander aimlessly in the woods looking for the elusive morel, and for bringing home creepy looking enoki mushrooms from the Asian grocery store. Stuffed, sauteed, fried, over a steak, dipped in sauce, you name it- we will eat it. So it's not surprise that since we're on a homemade soup kick mushrooms make an appearance. 

Another thing we are really into is roasting things. Especially vegetables- the high heat seals in flavor and brings a smoky element to whatever type of veggie you are roasting. In this recipe, the high heat brings out the earthiness of the mushrooms, caramelizes the leek and shallot and gives you lots of roasty toasty browned bits in the pan to add tons of flavor to the soup. I am cooking bacon in the oven at the same time so I'll add a drizzle of bacon drippings to really bring out the smokiness in the flavors. Deglazing the pan with cognac, which is a classic partner for mushrooms, brings a note of sophistication to the soup. Finished with cream, this soup has loads of character, flavor and warms you up on a chilly day. Homemade croutons and big bacon chunks finish it off with a rustic flair.

A quick word about mushrooms- The mushrooms I have chosen to use are easy to find in almost every supermarket. The typical package of mushrooms is 8 ounces and if you can't find all three types, or if you want to try a different mushroom, such as porcini, as long as you have a pound and a half, mix it up! I don't care for shiitake mushrooms much, but if you use them, remove and discard the entire stem-it's tough and woody. You can use just about any other mushroom except morels. Even if they are in season, they don't work well with roasting. If in doubt, just roast a few in the mix and taste test them. If you want to play it safe you can even use 3 packages of white button mushrooms and still have great results.

Creamy Mushroom Soup

• 1 pkg button mushrooms
• 1 pkg portobello mushrooms
• 1 pkg cremini mushrooms
• 3 leeks, cleaned well and chopped
• 3 medium shallots, chopped
• big pinch dried thyme, crumbled
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• salt and pepper
• 1/4 cup cognac
• 4 cups chicken stock
• 1/3 cup heavy cream
• 8 slices bacon
• Homemade croutons 

Make croutons ahead of time and store in airtight container.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Wipe mushrooms clean. Trim off stem ends. Halve or quarter any large button or cremini mushrooms. Cut the portobellos into similar size chunks. In a large roasting pan toss the mushrooms, leek, shallots, and thyme. Season with salt and pepper. Roast for 20-45 minutes, stirring occasionally until mushrooms are brown and tender.

While the vegetables are roasting, place the bacon slices on a sheet pan with a rim that has been sprayed with cooking spray. Bake until crispy and brown. This should take about 20 minutes. Drain off about 1-2 tablespoons of bacon fat and toss with vegetables. Remove bacon from pan and drain on paper towels. Break into large pieces. Set aside for later.

When the vegetables are done, remove to a large bowl. Use the cognac to deglaze the roasting pan, stirring to loosen up any browned bits from the bottom. Add the broth. 

Working in batches, puree the vegetables with the broth mixture in a food processor. Pour into stockpot. Add the cream. Heat to serving temperature. Serve soup in bowls sprinkled with homemade croutons and several pieces of bacon per bowl. A teensy sprinkle of something green looks pretty too- fresh thyme leaves or minced parsley work nicely.

Homemade Croutons

• several slices crusty white bread
• 3-4 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 cloves garlic, bruised

Cut the bread into large cubes. Set aside. In a small saucepan heat  the olive oil with the bruised garlic cloves. Allow to steep for at least an hour. Remove the garlic cloves (save for use in another recipe or throw in the vegetables when making this soup) and drizzle oil over the bread cubes- you may NOT need all of it. You can use the leftover oil in the soup or refrigerate and save for another use. Toast the bread cubes in a hot heavy skillet- good old fashioned cast  iron is great for this- until browned and crispy. Drain on paper towels.

A chill is in the air, time to heat up the oven

Someone has created a monster. Like me. A braising monster. Frankenbraise? Count Braiseula? I cannot stop myself. I now look at everything in the cupboard, grocery store, freezer, and try to figure out how to include it in a braising recipe. I'm not kidding! Of course, this means that I have to drive back to the city for some really special ingredients to make a really special dish. 

Some days the grocery store is like Disneyland!

I managed to get a great deal on some boneless beef ribs (marked boneless beef short ribs) from our local market, but like I said, the produce section is often sorely lacking variety, and I had some ideas already going in my brain. A road trip to the city is in order. So that's exactly what I did. Braising beef in wine is always the right thing to do so Merlot went in the basket (good deal on a bottle). I wanted something other than the plain old white mushroom too, so grabbed a couple varieties and kept wandering. Ohhhhhhh great deal on a ceramic skillet, which is something I have been wanting for a white, so I pick up one in a cool platinum color. Some baby bok choy, Peruvian purple potatoes, shishito peppers, a trip to the olive bar (of course....) artisan bread, some other things for other recipes this week and off I go.

Ready to go in the oven

Now mind you, all of these things are not for this recipe today. I have a few things to work on this week so I figured it's the best time to get just what I needed while I was at the BIG store. Mascarpone and orecchiette will make a magical pasta dish. Shishito peppers, beautiful olives and white Vermont cheddar with Hatch chilies will make great nibbles and with the cooler temps, and I have another lush soup to put together this week. Those Peruvian purple potatoes are going to make a simple fish dish a little more special.

Any day I get to use the Le Creuset is of course, a good day! If you don't have a Dutch oven, you seriously need to get one. You don't have to plunk down a ton of cash either. Lodge brand makes a great cast iron Dutch oven that's under fifty dollars and as cast iron, will last a lifetime if you season and care for it properly. While I wish I had an actual braiser pan, a Dutch oven subs nicely, and is perfect for lots of great dishes.

Getting ready to braise- the beef snuggled down in the herby
wine with bacon, smothered with leeks and mushrooms

Alright, so let's talk about our ingredients. I will be using-

• boneless beef ribs (also called country style ribs) 6 to 8 pieces
• 4 slices bacon
• 1 lb assorted fresh mushrooms
• 3 leeks
• 5-6 cloves garlic
• olive oil
• butter
• flour
• salt and pepper
• 1 1/2 cups Merlot 
• 2 tbs chopped sun dried tomato or tomato paste
• 2 tsp chopped fresh rosemary or 1 tsp dried, crumbled
• 2 lay leaves
• 2 tsp chopped fresh marjoram or 1 tsp dried, crumbled

Wipe the mushrooms clean. Trim off the dried stem end and discard. Remove stems if desired (reserve for soup or sauce). Slice the mushrooms thickly. Set aside.

I used a mix of button, baby bella and cremini mushrooms

Peel the outer tough leaves of the leeks. We will need the white part with just a small bit if the green part, so cut that off and discard. Trim the roots of the leeks but leave them intact. Slice the leeks lengthwise and rinse thoroughly to make sure there is no sand (leeks can be pretty gritty). If your leeks are big giant leeks like I had  you can cut them into quarters lengthwise.

Leaving the root intact holds the leek together while cooking

In a small dish place about 1/2 cup or so of flour. Season the meat with salt and pepper on all sides.

Save yourself a dish to wash- use the meat wrapping to hold
the flour- then just throw away when you're finished.

Cut the bacon into pieces- a little larger than "lardons" but not quite an inch wide- about the width of your finger. 

Cook the bacon in the Dutch oven until crispy and brown- no soggy flabby bacon allowed! Remove to paper towel to drain.

It doesn't look like much but a little bacon goes a long way

In the same pot with the bacon fat we are going to brown the beef. Dredge the beef in the flour and brown in the hot pan. Sear the meat quickly without cooking through. Remove to a plate as you get them browned. Don't crowd them in the pot- they won't brown, they will just steam and become mushy and not brown and seared.

After meat is browned, add a tablespoon each of oil and butter if needed. Place the leeks in the pot cut side down and cook until slightly browned. Flip them over and cook another minute or two. Remove to plate with the meat. 

Turn the leeks with tongs for easy handling.

Again, add another tablespoon each of butter and oil to pot. Add half the mushrooms; cook and stir until mushrooms are browned and any liquid has evaporated. Remove to bowl and repeat with other half of mushrooms. Remove to bowl.

Add garlic and herbs to pot, cook and stir for just a minute. You don't want the garlic to brown. 

Look at all the delicious fond in the bottom of the pot. A
quick deglaze and it's part of the sauce.

Add the wine to the pot and bring to a boil, stirring to lift up the crusty browned bits. Boil for a couple minutes to reduce slightly. Return the beef and bacon to the pot, followed by the vegetables. 

Deglazing a pot is probably the most important step in making
a beautifully flavored dish. So much deliciousness clinging to
the bottom of the pot. Use it!

Cover and place in 300 degree oven. Slowly braise for 2-3 hours until the meat is tender. Check once or twice and add a splash of beef broth if needed. 

Remove meat and vegetables from pot and place in serving bowl. 

Once you carefully remove the leeks, beef and mushrooms you will have the most beautiful, flavorful jus on the planet. It doesn't look anything like the wine it was to begin with. The vegetables and meat have added their own juices to the wine and now you have a ready made sauce. Bring cooking liquid to boil and reduce by half. 

Look at all those little bits of garlic, herbs, bacon, sun dried
tomatoes and all the cooking juices.

Serve meat and vegetables with mashed potatoes with sauce and lots of crusty bread for dipping.

Very easy. Very delicious. Very French. Bon appetit!

Lazy Sunday and Philly Cheesesteak Soup

The forecast calls for autumn-like temperatures and for me that means firing up the oven, baking some artisan bread and making a big pot of soup. A friend of mine recently inspired me with a soup she made for dinner and I thought I'd give it a try and put my spin on it.

I've made many many pots of soup over the years. I can't tell you how many turkey frames or chicken bones ended up in the soup pot. Ham bones and beans, lentils and kielbasa. Veggie beef, hot and sour, chili, cream of this or that. One soup I have never made from scratch before- cheese soup. No real reason why, just never have. That is where my challenge to myself begins-master the cheese soup and up the ante by making Philly Cheesesteak Soup.

I picked The Chef's brain a little for cheese soup recipes. I tell ya, it's nice having a resident expert in the house! I think he was a little crabby (allergy season) with my questions but he's a good sport anyway. I'm sure it's tough for a chef to answer these silly questions about what's such a basic recipe but my Chef is as passionate about food as I am. We talked about different cheeses to use, what melts better than others, real cheese versus the fake cheese gunk that's VERY common in Philadelphia on a cheesesteak sandwich. 

Pulling off this soup is going to be quite an event. I need to start with the croutons. Get a nice loaf of crusty bread and cut into somewhat large cubes. Melt half a stick of butter, add 1/4 cup olive oil and several cloves of fresh garlic, cut in half and crushed. Heat for 10-15 minutes to infuse the garlic. Drizzle over the bread cubes, tossing to coat evenly. We have been snacking off our baguette I bought for croutons, so I had only half to work with.

Now, here is a trick I just learned from Food Network chef Damaris Phillips- heat a big cast iron skillet for about 5 minutes until hot. Add the croutons and cook and stir until toasty allover- you end up with a crusty, chewy bite of bread and not a dessicated cube of yuck. Set aside and allow to cool. You can do this the night before even and keep them stored in an airtight container.

Now let's get started on the steak strips. My plan is to buy a small piece of sirloin to cook, but you could use leftover steak if you had it.  Let's get started on the Philly Cheesesteak part. You will need-

• one 4-6 oz tender steak such as sirloin or New York Strip*
• one large sweet onion
• 2 bell peppers
• 2-3 cloves garlic, minced
• butter
• salt and pepper

Slice the meat into strips, then again crosswise into bite-sized pieces. Season with salt and pepper and set aside. Clean the vegetables. Cut the onion into strips and again crosswise into bite-sized strips. Repeat with the bell pepper. You don't want fajitas here- just bite size pieces. I also used half a Hatch chili pepper fora little more kick.

In large skillet melt a couple tablespoons of butter. Add the steak and stir fry for a minute or two. Add a couple more tablespoons of butter to skillet. Add the vegetables, season with salt and pepper. Cook and stir over low heat for 10-15 minutes until onions have become a little caramelized. Add peppers a little later if you like more crunch. Remove from skillet to bowl and cover with foil.

* You want to make sure what you have is TENDER, so if you choose to go with say, round steak, you're going to need to cook that low and slow in some braising liquid for a good hour or two until tender. My mom often used steak like this in pepper steak or stroganoff, adding the other ingredients much later.

Now that we've got that part done, we need to get our soup going. For the cheese soup, you will need-

• 1/4 cup butter
• 1/4 cup flour
• 1/4 cup good Cognac
• 3 cups chicken broth
• 3 cups whole milk
• 1 pound cheese- I am using half mild cheddar and half Monterrey Jack for smooth melting, shredded

A little cognac never hurt, right? "Airplane bottles" are perfect.

In a large pot, melt the butter. Add the flour and whisk to make a smooth roux. Add the chicken broth, milk and cognac. Cook over medium high heat, whisking constantly, until mixture thickens and bubbles. Remove from heat. 

Using a wooden spoon to stir, add the cheese in parts, stirring until melted before adding the next handful. If needed, return to LOW heat briefly to melt. Cover pot and set aside.

To serve, in each of six deep bowls, evenly divide the steak and vegetables. Fill the bowl with soup, top with garlic croutons and serve immediately. Alternatively, you can just combine everything except the croutons, which is what I did.

The first thing you get is the ever so slight whiff of that cognac on your first bite. It adds just the perfect bit of "luxe" that cheese soup can lack. It really kicks it up from homestyle comfort food to something just a little more gourmet. Then you get the tender bites of steak and onions and peppers and those crusty, chewy homemade croutons- believe me folks, don't skimp on the croutons and buy store bought. These are like little bits of garlic toast and oh so good. This is going to be such a great dinner on a cold, snowy day. It's filling and creamy and hearty at the same time. You're going to love it.