Gluten and Dairy Free Cream of Mushroom

Hello.

I'm reposting this piece from last year. The soup is amazing, and I think everyone should make this for Thanksgiving!

There was a long time (until about 10 years ago) that I didn't care for soup much. I've always loved split pea with ham and New England clam chowder, but other soups just seemed thin and boring to me. In the recent past, though, I realized that soups, curries and stews are all based on the same principles, making me try thicker soups with lots of layers of flavor. A whole new world opened to me. And, of course Asian noodle soups are a favorite of mine now, so I can say I'm a soup lover through and through.

I came across a gluten and dairy free cream of mushroom soup (via my friend Thanya whose sister-in-law is an expert of all things allergen-friendly). And, this year, I added bacon to it, so now, it's perfect.

There are a lot of steps, considering that a traditional cream of mushroom soup doesn't involve three steps to thicken it. And, of course, I love cooking my mushrooms in butter, but that doesn't really fit into my diet right now. By using bacon fat, I was able to bring back some of the depth that butter gives the mushrooms (and of course, anything with bacon is better).

So consider this a nudge to make a wonderful and satisfying cream of mushroom soup for your friends and family this holiday season!

Gluten and Dairy Free Cream of Mushroom Soup

adapted from original recipe: Cybele Pascal, Allergen-Free Cuisine, 10.8.2010

serves 4 to 6

Ingredients:

  • 3 Tablespoons olive oil
  • 2 small shallots finely minced
  • 1 ½ lb. mushrooms, chopped (I use a mix of white mushrooms and Chantrelles)
  • 1 sprig of fresh thyme or ¼ teaspoon dried thyme
  • 2 Tablespoons tapioca starch/flour
  • 2 ½ cups chicken broth
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 1/4 teaspoon porcini salt
  • freshly ground pepper
  • 2 Tablespoons quick-cooking tapioca
  • ½ cup rice milk
  • 1/2 pound black forest bacon, cooked and diced

Method:

  • Over high medium -heat, heat olive oil in a heavy bottomed pot, large enough to accommodate all ingredients.
  • At this point, I also add in a bit of the grease from the bacon (used for garnish at the end). It give the mushrooms a nice richness.
  • Add porcini salt, shallots and mushrooms, stir often, cook for 3 minutes.
  • Lower heat to medium and cook for 5 minutes until golden brown.
  • Stirring well to coat mushrooms, add in thyme and tapioca starch/flour.
  • Reduce heat to low. Scraping the bottom of the pan to get all the tapioca and mushrooms incorporated, cook for about 5 minutes.
  • Making sure that all clumps are broken up, add 2 cups of the chicken broth, salt and pepper.
  • Stir well, increase heat to medium-high and bring to a boil.
  • Reduce heat to low and simmer for 15 minutes.
  • Boil remaining 1/2 cup chicken stock and add quick-cook tapioca to the stock. Mix gently.
  • Add chicken stock/quick-cook tapioca mixture to the pot.
  • Keep the heat on a low simmer, stirring often to help the quick-cook tapioca dissolve. It's ready when the tapioca is completely clear.
  • Add rice milk.
  • Pulse in food processor (or use a hand blender or a blender) until desired texture is reached. I keep mine kind of chunky, but you can blend it all the way to smooth.
  • Serve in bowls with diced bacon on top.

Lentil Butternut Squash Walnut and Ham Stew

It's amazing how little it takes to make lentil butternut squash and ham stew.

My Saturday walk brought me to my local produce market. I picked up a butternut squash, it being Fall and all, and grabbed a few other things. On my way back home, I stopped off at the butcher shop where I spotted this lovely ham hock (see above). As I walked home, I wondered what I might make with the squash, when I recalled the lentils in my cupboard.

I'm not generally a fan of lentils, but I had a big bag of them in the cupboard waiting to be made into something, anything actually, since  in general, I'm not a huge lentil fan. I do really like lentils in Indian food, but had yet to find a way that I enjoyed eating them in a home cooked meal.

When I opened the cabinet to get the lentils out, a bag of curry powder fell onto the countertop. I figured this was a sign of some sort and so, I proceeded to build a dish around the lentils, curry powder and ham hock. The ham hock and beans made me think of my favorite soup, split pea with ham, so I also grabbed some nutmeg, cloves and cinnamon to round out the spices for the recipe.

Roasting the squash with the shallots for awhile, before adding the par-boiled lentils and ham hock, softened it just enough to allow some caramelization to begin, before the stewing began.

I've always wanted to try walnuts with squash, so figured it being a time of experimentation, why not do it now? The walnuts kept their crunch and the flavor combination was great.

A combination of slow and low cooking time, and the blend of warm, earthy spices make this stew perfect for the shorter and cooler days that are upon us.

Lentil Butternut Squash Walnut and Ham Stew

Ingredients:

  • 1 butternut squash, peeled, seeded and cut into cubes
  • 2 shallots, peeled and minced
  • 1/2 tablespoon curry powder
  • 2 tablespoons olive oil
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1/4 cup chopped walnuts
  • 1/3 cup lentils, cooked until soft, 20 minutes in water
  • 1 ham hock
  • 2 bay leaves
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
  • 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground cloves, or 10 whole cloves

Method:

  1. Place the butternut squash, shallots, curry powder and olive oil in a heavy ovenproof pan and mix to coat all the squash pieces with oil and spices.
  2. Cook in a preheated 350 degree F oven for 25 minutes, until the squash begins to soften.
  3. While the squash cooks, heat a pot on high heat, add the ham hock and brown on all sides.
  4. Add the cooked lentils to the ham hock, with enough water to cover halfway up the hock.
  5. Remove the squash from the oven, add the squash to the lentils and ham hock and stir in the walnuts.
  6. Add enough water to cover the mixture in the pot and place in the oven, covering the pot halfway with a lid.
  7. Cook for 20 minutes, stir, return to the oven and cook another 20 minutes.
  8. The stew is done when there is a slight film over the top of the beans, showing some glossiness, but with a  bit of liquid left in the pot.

Michael Natkin's Herbivoracious: Roasted Maitake Mushrooms in Smoky Tea Broth

Well hello there. A few weeks ago, I had the distinct pleasure of meeting Michael Natkin of the site (and new cookbook) Herbivoracious. As the name suggests, he is a vegetarian chef.

I also found out that Michael is a really nice guy. He loves what he does and is really passionate about sharing his knowledge and love of vegetarian cooking with the world. The book's introduction outlines his very personal journey to becoming a vegetarian, which involved his mother's battle with cancer, his taking over the cooking for the family, and ultimately learning through trial and error about food and cooking.

The recipes in Herbivoracious are straightforward  and easy to follow. I chose to make the Maitake Mushrooms in Smoky Tea Broth. The choice was simple. I am in love with Lapsang Souchang tea. Therefore, any recipe that allows me to use said tea, is for me. It turned out just as the book said: salty, smoky and earthy. Considering this is such a simple recipe, you could really wow a crowd with it because the mix of flavors packs a powerful punch.

It has been about 9 months since I started attending food blogger events out in the real world. I'm amazed at what a nice group of people I've met and how open they all are in sharing tips and tricks of blogging. When I arrived at Cookhouse, the beautiful North Beach location where the event was held, I was nervous and worried I wouldn't feel comfortable with the crowd.

The nerves disappeared immediately when Michael walked right up, shook my hand and we proceeded to discuss the night's menu. His ease with the crowd was refreshing. He talked to me about sharing vegetarian tips (since I dabble with vegetarian recipes and he's an expert) and offered up encouragement with my vegetarian experiments. His blog is amazing and really shows his personality and skill through the written recipes as well as the video demos.

If you'd like to make the Maitake Mushrooms in Smoky Tea Broth that I have shown here, click on over to Michael's Herbivoracious site to check out the book.