Wild Mushroom and Brie Soup

I recently had some leftover Brie (I realize that seems like something that isn't possible, but I bought the world's largest Brie wheel at Sam's) and needed to do something with it before it was wasted. One Sunday afternoon we went to a small cafe in McCaysville, Tennessee, which really wasn't very good except for the soup my husband had - Mushroom Brie. I had one bite and said to him, "I MUST MAKE THIS." I looked at a few different recipes, basically combined bits of each and came up with this pot of creamy deliciousness. WARNING: It's isn't a "quick" cook - this may have had something to do with my sous chef being a five-year old. Also, this is not healthy - it is made of cheese and cream. Deal with it. It is, however, vegetarian. Rare for me, but mushrooms are "nature's meat," right?

Ingredients:

1 lb wild mushrooms, sliced (I used one package of "gourmet blend" - which included shiitaki, crimini and oyster mushrooms - and one package of baby bella)
1/4 cup + 2 tbsp butter
1 tbsp Olive Oil (I always use Extra Virgin)
1/2 cup chopped celery
3/4 cup chopped onion (white)
1/4 cup chopped garlic
1/3 cup flour
1 tsp fresh thyme (additional for garnish)
1/2 cup sherry
4 cups vegetable stock
2 cups half and half
1/2 cup heavy cream
1 cup Brie cheese, crumbled into small pieces (rind removed) - the smaller the better to completely melt
Dash of cayenne
Salt and Pepper to taste


Directions:

1. Brown mushrooms
Add 1 tbsp butter and 1/2 tbsp Olive Oil (note: if you don't add the oil, the butter will burn) to large skillet, add half of the mushrooms and brown each side. Repeat for second half of mushrooms. Set mushrooms aside.

2. Make the roux
Melt 1/4 cup butter in a large soup pot over medium-low heat. Add onions, celery and garlic and cook until soft (8 minutes or so). Add thyme, flour and dash of cayenne and stir until roux forms (about 3 minutes).

Softening the onions, celery and garlic

3. Soup base
Add sherry to roux, increase heat to medium high and bring mixture to a boil. Add the stock and the half and half and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and let simmer for 10 minutes.

My adorable sous chef

4. Puree soup to smooth
Two options here:
a. Use an immersion blender to puree the soup until smooth
or
b. Let cool and blend in batches in a blender or food processor until smooth before returning to pot

5. Add the mushrooms and lets soup come to a boil. Then reduce heat and let simmer for 20 minutes

After this, I immediately went on Amazon and ordered an immersion blender. Note to self: don't add too much soup to your processor!

6. Add the CHEESE
Add brie to pot and whisk to help the melting process. Add cream and simmer for at least 10 minutes.

Voila!

Wild Mushroom and Brie Soup