Homemade Mushroom Soup is always my first soup of the season. An annual tradition signaling the end of summer, I make a pot right after Labor Day as our thoughts turn to cooler weather and comfort food.
This soup is the foundation for so many of my favorite winter stews and casseroles. I keep some on hand in my freezer pantry, for those recipes that call for “a can of”.
Turmeric and saffron give this soup its beautiful golden color! The recipe is so fast and easy, you can make a batch in under an hour. I use a combination of mushrooms, such as white button, cremini and shitake.
You can finish with cream for a Cream of Mushroom soup that is better than any canned. Puree the soup or leave it chunky, your choice. It freezes beautifully so make some now to have ready for the holidays!
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Ingredients:
- 6 cups fresh sliced mushrooms
- 1 cup onion, cut into small dice
- 1 cup celery, cut into small dice
- 1/4 cup butter
- 1/4 cup white rice flour or corn starch
- 4 cups (32 oz. carton) gluten free, low sodium chicken broth
- 1 tsp. salt
- 1/4 tsp. fresh ground pepper
- ½ tsp. turmeric
- generous pinch of saffron
- 1/4 cup heavy cream, or half and half
- paprika
Preparation:
Whether you slice the mushrooms yourself or buy them pre-sliced, you will need to give them a good rinse.
Melt butter in a Dutch oven or 4-Quart soup pot. Sauté the onions and celery in the butter until translucent.
Add all the mushrooms to the pot.
Continue cooking over medium heat until the mushrooms release their liquid.
Have the chicken broth ready and stir in the flour. It will immediately begin to thicken.
Slowly stream in the chicken broth, stirring constantly so the flour doesn’t clump. Add the salt, pepper, turmeric and saffron.
Simmer 15 minutes then remove from heat. Soup can be prepared ahead and frozen up to this point.
Here it is after cooling down for an hour or so.
I ladle the soup into freezer containers, about 1-1/2 cups each.
Notes ♪♫ If you plan to freeze the soup, I recommend not adding cream at this point. For Cream of Mushroom Soup, drizzle in cream or half and half just before serving.
