Home Cooking Column - By Barbara Collins

I love homemade mushroom soup and the walnuts give it that extra bit of creaminess. The flavour combination really works but you could leave them out if you want.

Ingredients

50 g (12 oz) button mushrooms
1 small onion, skinned and finely chopped
50 g (2 oz) butter
1 level tbsp flour
450 ml (3/4 pint) chicken stock
450 ml (3/4 pint) milk
50 g (2 oz) walnuts, chopped
1/2 level tsp salt
freshly ground pepper
150 ml (5 fl oz) fresh single cream 

Method

Wipe and chop the mushrooms, reserving a few finely sliced mushrooms for garnish. In a saucepan, soften the onion in the melted butter, add the chopped mushrooms and fry for 2 minutes.

Remove from the heat, stir in the flour, stock, milk, walnuts and seasoning. Bring to the boil. Simmer, covered, for about 30 minutes.

Puree the soup, add the finely sliced mushrooms and fresh cream, return to the pan and cook slowly for a further 5 minutes, adjusting seasoning. Do not boil. Serve hot.

Tip

You can add a clove of crushed garlic after you soften the onions.

Contact Barbara @thegoodchinaset or on collib40@googlemail.com.

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