Polish Mushroom Soup

Martha Stewart Living

Makes 8-12 servings

    4-6 dried mushrooms (borowik or crepes)                        
    12 lg. dried shiitake                                          
    3 quarts beef stock base                                       
    5 ribs med. celery chopped                                     
    2 lg. onions chop                                              
    5 carrots chop                                                 
    1 pound button mushrooms sliced                                
    2 tablespoons parsley fine chop                                
    2 tablespoons dill weed fine chop                              
    1 tablespoon salt                                              
    1 cup orzo pasta                                               
    2 tablespoons butter                                           
    2 tablespoons flour                                            
    1 cup sour cream                                               
    Pepper                                                         

Martha’s mother makes this hearty soup with dried borowik mushrooms-a pungent Polish variety-dried shiitakes, and fresh button mushrooms. Store dried mushrooms in an airtight container to preserve their flavor; reconstitute them before using. You can substitute dried cèpes or porcini mushrooms for the borowick mushrooms.

Rinse the dried mushrooms. Place mushrooms in 2 cups of cold water, and soak for at least 4 hours or overnight.

In a large pot, bring the stock to a simmer. Add the celery, onions, and carrots. Strain the dried mushrooms, reserving the soaking liquid. Add the strained soaking liquid to the soup. Chop the hydrated mushrooms into 1/4-inch pieces slightly larger than the diced vegetables, and add to the soup. Add the sliced white button mushrooms.

Cover, and cook the soup until the vegetables are tender, about an hour. Bring the soup to a boil. Stirring constantly, add the orzo. Reduce the heat to a gentle boil, and, stirring occasionally to prevent the pasta from sticking, cook until the orzo is cooked through, another 6 to 8 minutes.

Meanwhile melt the butter in a small saucepan over medium heat. Add the flour, and cook, stirring constantly until smooth, 3 to 5 minutes. Remove 1 cup of the broth from the soup, and add to the roux, whisking constantly until slightly thickened and free of lumps. Stir the thickened liquid into the soup. Add the chopped parsley and dill.

Finish the soup with sour cream: Add 1/4 cup of the thickened soup to the sour cream. Whisk until smooth. Add the sour cream to the soup, whisking constantly until it is well incorporated, about 3 minutes. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

MY NOTE:This makes A LOT of soup.  I halved the recipe and still got 8 servings.  You can pretty much use any kind of dried mushroom.  Next time, I would wait about 20 minutes to add the carrots and 40 minutes to add the celery, so they are not completely soft.  Also, make sure you cook the flour for the full 5 minutes or you will be able to taste it in the soup.  Finally, I added a full cup of pasta even though I halved the recipe.