Homemade Cream of Mushroom Soup

Cream of Mushroom, the Right Way!

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Have you made a blunder? I certainly have! Sometimes mistakes become the source of stress but, in this instance, it became a savory and hardy meal that we have enjoyed for years!

It all began with my early attempts to cook from scratch. We were preparing to host Thanksgiving dinner for not only his family the Saturday prior, but also my family the day of! It was about to get busy!

I had scoured the internet, looking for a healthy and simple way to make Cream of Mushroom Soup for the Green Bean Casserole I planned to include in our line-up of sides for the holiday. Would you believe, I could not find one that was made with whole foods!

I found substitutes for canned mushroom soup, uses for canned mushroom soup, and methods for stretching canned mushroom soup!

Determined, I headed to the drawing board... and my beloved kitchen!

Rain poured outside as the clink and clang of pots and pans rustled inside, as I made concoction after concoction.

One of my favorite past times is just smelling each spice as I take it out of the pantry. I must say, I felt like a crazed mad scientist as I mixed chicken broth, thyme, and rosemary, bullion and cayenne.

By the time five o'clock rolled around, there was quite an array of spices on the counter, a few spills, and lots of bowls of different flavors.

By the time my husband walked in the door that day though, he was met with a wonderful smell. He headed straight for the kitchen, asking, "Mmmm, smells good! Is that dinner?"

Disheartened, I said, "Well, no, it was supposed to be Cream of Mushroom Soup for the Green Bean Casserole Saturday, but it's not thick enough."

Grabbing a spoon for a quick taste test, he said, "Forget Green Bean Casserole, let's throw in some of that leftover steak from yesterday and have this for supper!"

And that's pretty much what we did! I reheated the steak, now chopped into bits, with white wine and thyme.

Then, we added it to the Cream of Mushroom Soup Experiment! I let it simmer for a few minutes while I dug out some hardy, crusty bread we had picked up at the Farmer's Market.

That was a dinner to remember! It was exciting creating a completely new dish! Plus, the driving rain and occasional claps of thunder added an ambience to our dining room. We lit a few candles and served up our new Cream of Mushroom Soup and Bread dinner!

The beautiful part of this recipe is, it is completely unique and new, it's healthy, it's economical, and it's a comforting and savory end to the day!

Homemade Cream of Mushroom Soup Recipe

Servings:

Serves 4

Homemade Cream of Mushroom Soup Ingredients:

Meat

1-2 cups chopped meat (this can be chicken, turkey, or steak)

2 Tbs White Wine or Marsala

2 tsp dried thyme

2 Tbs butter

Dash of salt and pepper

Soup

4 Tbs butter

1 onion, diced

4 cloves garlic or 2 Tbs minced garlic

2 cartons mushrooms

6 Tbs flour

4 tsp dry thyme

1/2 cup white or marsala wine

2 cups chicken broth & 2 cups beef broth

or 4 cups chicken broth & 2 Tsp beef bullion

2 tsp salt

1 tsp freshly ground pepper

1 cup heavy cream

Garnish

Chopped fresh parsley or 2 Tbs dried parsley

Homemade Cream of Mushroom Soup Directions:

Prepare the Meat

1. Melt 2-3 Tbs butter in a skillet.

2. Dice the meat to be used in about 1-inch pieces. This is an excellent recipe for using up leftover chicken, turkey, or even steak!

3. Add the meat to your skillet along with 2 Tbs White Wine or Marsala and

   2 tsp dried thyme.

4. Allow to reheat for 5-6 minutes over medium heat.

5. Once reheated, pour the contents into another bowl for the time being.

Prepare the Soup

1. Melt 4 Tbs butter in the skillet.

2. Saute the onions for several minutes, and then add the garlic. Saute together 1-2 minutes.

3. Add 2 cartons of washed, sliced mushrooms and saute for 2-3 minutes.

4. Add 2 tsp of dried thyme. Mix gently.

5. Pour in 1/2 cup white wine and mix well.

6. Sprinkle in 6 Tbs flour little-by-little, stirring gently to coat the onions and mushrooms.

7. Once flour is fully mixed in, add the broth and bullion. You can either use 2 cups chicken broth and 2 cups beef broth OR use 4 cups chicken broth and add 2 tsp beef bullion.

8. Add a dash of pepper and salt.

9. Allow to simmer for 5-10 minutes.

10. Add 1 cup heavy cream and 1/2 cup freshly chopped parsley (or 2 Tbs dried parsley).

11. Add the meat back into the skillet and mix in.

12. Allow to simmer another 5-10 minutes. Serve with a hardy, crusty bread!

I hope you enjoy this wonderful, savory meal as much as we have! Bon Apetit!