Field Mushroom & Fennel Soup

 

I like the size, meatiness and rich flavour of field mushrooms.  They are robust enough to be stuffed, put under the grill and over the barbecue.  In this recipe I use them chopped up with fennel for a pureed soup.  The two vegetables pair well with their contrast in taste and texture.  To get the soup going, onions are fried gently in olive oil before the mushroom and fennel are thrown in, followed by stock and a few potatoes to thicken it up.  When the vegetables are tender, my trusty stick blender dives in to do its job.  Milk is added to make the soup velvety and lemon zest stirred in for zing.   I then lightly fry reserved slices of the mushroom in butter with chopped garlic and let them float on top of the soup with some feathery fennel fronds.  (You might not want to open another tin of mushroom soup again.)

Serves 2

INGREDIENTS

• 1 medium onion, roughly chopped
• 1 garlic clove, finely chopped
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 tablespoon butter
• 400g / 14oz field mushrooms
• 1 medium fennel bulb
• 2 potatoes, peeled and diced
• 3 cups vegetable or chicken stock
• ½ cup milk
• 2 teaspoons lemon zest
• sea salt
• freshly ground black pepper

METHOD

1. Thinly slice about 100g / 3½ oz of the mushrooms and set aside, then roughly cut up the rest into pieces.
2. Trim fennel top and reserve some of its feathery fronds.  Roughly chop the fennel bulb.
3. In a large saucepan, heat oil over medium.  Add the chopped onion and fennel and sauté for a few minutes until the vegetables are slightly softened.
4. Add the diced potatoes and mushroom pieces.  Sauté for another minute to coat them in oil.
5. Add stock.  Bring it to a boil, then reduce the heat, cover and simmer for about 20 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the potatoes are tender.
6. Remove the pan from heat and puree the soup with a stick blender until smooth.  Stir in the milk and lemon zest.  Return to a simmer and cook, stirring, for a minute or so until heated through.   
7. In a small frying pan, heat butter and chopped garlic over medium.  Add the mushroom slices and sauté for no more than a minute until they are just wilted.
8. Ladle the soup into bowls.  Season with salt and pepper to taste.  Top each one with the mushroom slices and garnish with chopped fennel fronds.