Creamy Mushroom Soup

The Hunger Games movie comes out next week and I'm so excited!  I really loved the book!

The Plain Dealer held a recipe contest for food inspired by The Hunger Games trilogy.  Entries were due on Monday and they'll post the winning recipes in the Taste section of the paper on Wednesday March 21.  The recipes had to be original, and we were allowed 50 words of description and one photo.  I submitted six recipes, I was hoping for more, but ran out of time.  I'm going to be sharing them today and all next week to celebrate the movie opening.

This is what I submitted for Creamy Mushroom Soup (contest category:  Capitol Fare).

Capitol food is so rich and luxurious that Katniss had problems eating it because she was accustomed to a bland diet.  This creamy mushroom soup is a far cry from District 12 food, it's rich, velvety and full of flavor.

Creamy Mushroom Soup

Original Recipe

Yield:  4 servings

1 lb mushrooms, sliced

1 small (~1 cup) onion, diced

4 Tbsp butter, divided

1 tsp dried thyme

3 1/2 cups chicken stock

1 cup heavy cream

Salt, to taste

Freshly ground pepper, to taste

Balsamic vinegar (optional)

In a stockpot on medium heat, melt 2 tablespoons of butter, then add the onions.  Cook until they are softened (about 5 minutes).  Turn the heat up to high, add the remaining butter and the mushrooms.  Stirring occasionally, cook the mushrooms until they brown.  Lower the temperature and add the thyme and chicken stock.  Simmer for about 10 minutes, then remove from heat.  

Puree the soup until it's smooth.  If using a blender, work in batches and have a large bowl ready for the pureed portion of the soup.  Don't fill the blender more than 1/3 to 1/2 full.  Remove the cap from the hole in the blender lid.  Put the blender lid on tight and cover the hole with a towel while pureeing.  Repeat until all of the soup is smooth.

Return the pureed soup to the pot on medium-low heat.  Stir in the heavy cream.  Reheat the soup slowly, and do not boil (lower the heat if needed).  Add salt and pepper to taste.  Serve immediately and drizzle each serving with balsamic vinegar (if using).  This soup goes great with a salad of bitter greens and pea-sized tomatoes, thin-sliced, rare roast beef, and noodles in a green sauce.