Name: Quicker Creamy Mushroom Soup
Total time: 1 h 15 min
Cuisine: MidwestUS & CanadaAmerican
Ingredients: 4 tablespoons unsalted butter; 3 pounds white or cremini mushrooms , broken into rough pieces (see note); 2 leeks , white and light green parts only, halved lengthwise and chopped (see Prepping and Washing Leeks, related); Salt and pepper; 4 garlic cloves , minced; 2 teaspoons chopped fresh thyme; 5 cups low-sodium beef broth (see note); 1/2 cup Madeira (see note), plus additional for serving; 1 cup heavy cream; 2 tablespoons lemon juice

Why This Recipe Works

Of all the mushroom varieties, we settled on white or cremini mushrooms for our Creamy Mushroom Soup. They were readily available and possessed a good meaty flavor. What appeared to be more mushrooms than we could possibly need reduced down to a fraction of their bulk once cooked. As they cooked down, the flavor of the mushrooms concentrated, which made for a rich, flavorful soup.

The extra dose of mushrooms added enough bulk to our soup that we could eliminate flour as a thickener—a nice benefit, as flour made the soup pasty. Swapping out onions in favor of leeks resulted in the perfect velvety texture we were looking for. To accentuate the meatiness of the mushrooms, we used beef broth instead of chicken. We also reduced the cream, as too much of it masked the other flavors.

Before You Begin

Since this soup is pureed, don’t waste time slicing mushrooms. Just break them into rough pieces with your hands. Use the blender, not the food processor, for the smoothest possible soup. You can use brandy or dry sherry in place of the Madeira. Be sure to use low-sodium beef broth: Pacific beef broth is the test kitchen’s top-rated brand.

Instructions

COOK MUSHROOMS Melt butter in large Dutch oven over medium-high heat, stirring constantly, until butter is golden brown and has a nutty aroma, about 3 minutes. Add mushrooms, leeks, ½ teaspoon salt, and ¼ teaspoon pepper and cook, covered, until mushrooms release their liquid, about 5 minutes. Remove lid and cook, stirring occasionally, until liquid has evaporated, about 15 minutes. Remove 2/3 cup mushroom mixture, chop fine, and reserve.

SIMMER SOUP Add garlic and thyme to pot with remaining mushroom mixture and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Stir in broth and Madeira and bring to boil. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer, covered, until mushrooms and leeks are completely tender, about 20 minutes.

FINISH SOUP Puree soup in blender in batches until smooth. Return pureed soup to pot, stir in cream, lemon juice, and chopped mushrooms and return to simmer. Season with salt and pepper. Serve, drizzling individual portions with additional Madeira.