Wild Rice Soup With Porcini And Escarole
makes 4 main-course servings
Recipe from Domenica Marchetti
Tough, somewhat bitter escarole turns mellow and faintly nutty-tasting when cooked, a good match for the wild rice and mushrooms.
Read more about this recipe on the Cookthink blog.
ingredients
1 scant cup dried porcini mushrooms
1 1/2 cups boiling water
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon butter
2 spring onions or small leeks, trimmed and sliced thinly crosswise (white and light green parts only)
8 ounces mixed mushrooms, such as chanterelles, oyster, hen-of-the-woods or portobellos, cleaned and thinly sliced
1/2 cup dry sherry or white wine
1 small head escarole, trimmed and shredded (12 ounces)
6 cups fat-free, low-sodium chicken broth or vegetable broth
1 1/2 cups wild rice blend (a mix of wild rices and brown rice)
1/2 cup heavy cream
2 tablespoons minced flat-leaf parsley
timer
prep: 30 minutes
total: 1 hour 55 minutes
tools
small heat-proof bowl
aluminum foil
fine-mesh sieve lined with damp paper towel
Dutch oven
ladle
instructions
1. Place the porcini mushrooms in a small heat-proof bowl and pour the boiling water over them. Cover the bowl with a plate or aluminum foil and let the porcini soak for 20 minutes. Drain the porcini, reserving the liquid. Chop the porcini coarsely and set aside. Pass the liquid through a fine-mesh sieve lined with a damp paper towel into a clean bowl and reserve.
2. Heat the oil and butter in a large Dutch oven or heavy-bottomed pot placed over medium heat. When the butter has melted add the spring onions or leeks to the pot and stir to coat them thoroughly. Cook the onions, stirring them often to prevent browning, for 10 minutes, until softened. Stir the mixed mushrooms into the pot and add 1 teaspoon of salt and a few grindings of black pepper. Cover partially and cook, stirring from time to time, until the mushrooms tender, about 10 minutes. Stir in the reserved porcini mushrooms and cook for a minute or two.
3. Raise the heat to high and stir in the dry sherry, letting it boil for a minute or so. Reduce the heat to medium and add the shredded escarole by the handful, tossing to mix it with the other ingredients. Keep adding more escarole as those in the pot begin to wilt. Pour in the reserved porcini broth, reduce the heat to medium low, cover, and cook until the all of the escarole has wilted and begun to soften, about 7 minutes.
4. Stir in the wild rice mix and stir to incorporate it into the other ingredients. Pour in the chicken broth and raise the heat to medium high. When the soup begins to boil, reduce the heat to medium low, cover, and cook until the rice is tender, but still a bit chewy -- about 45 minutes -- and the broth has thickened. Stir in the heavy cream (and a splash more sherry if you like) and taste for seasoning, adding additional salt and pepper if necessary. Cook just until the soup comes to a simmer again. Turn off the heat and allow the soup to rest for just a couple of minutes.
5. To serve, ladle the soup into individual bowls and sprinkle each serving with a little parsley.
