Mushroom Soup

Instructions

1. Soak dried porcini mushrooms in 1 1/2 cups boiling water for ten minutes, remove mushrooms, reserving the liquid, slice, set aside
2. Heat 1 tablespoon of butter and 1 tablespoon olive oil in a soup pot, stir in the shallots and cook on very low heat until softened, around five minutes. Stir in the garlic, cook two minutes, turn off heat.
3. Heat a large nonstick saute pan on medium temperature, drop in two tablespoons butter, swirl to cover the pan, saute mushrooms in batches taking care not to overcrowd and adding more butter to the pan as needed for each batch. Cook mushrooms around two to three minutes until just barely golden and earthy scented, shake pan, then cook until tender, another two minutes, sprinkle mushrooms with a pinch of salt, stir, then transfer the cooked mushrooms into the pot with the shallots and garlic.
4. Once all of the mushrooms are cooked and transferred to the soup pot, increase the heat to medium, pour in the brandy, stir and cook 2 minutes, pour in the white wine. Cook until wine is nearly evaporated around 4 minutes. Sprinkle the flour all over the mushroom mixture, stir, cook 3-4 minutes. Add in the bay leaves, thyme, chicken stock and the liquid from the porcini mushrooms. Reduce heat to very low and simmer soup for a half hour or a bit longer for all of the ingredients to fully infuse. Fetch the two bay leaves out of the soup then working in batches, process the soup to a smooth yet still coarse consistency. Return soup to pot, stir in the half and half and simmer another ten minutes. Add in a pinch each of salt and pepper along with a small pinch of nutmeg, stir, check seasoning, adjust to taste. Serve hot.