Cream of Mushroom Soup: Crystal Style

When I filled out a questionnaire after my recent Crystal Cruise, I raved about the soups. On the first night of the cruise I ordered the butternut squash soup. It was so delicious, I knew I would be ordering soup as often as possible on the cruise. I ordered it four times: butternut squash, cream of zucchini, cream of asparagus, and cream of mushroom. They were all extraordinary, and if you take the time to make this recipe, you will be rewarded with a delicious soup. Here is my favorite cream soup from Crystal. When I commented on food (on the questionnaire) I told them not to change a thing. The food overall was as good as I've ever had, consistently. It's hard to serve quality food round the clock to 1,000 passengers, but they did. That is a daunting task, and considering the various individual requests they need to fill, everything is outstanding, and the soup was something I always looked forward to. I hope you enjoy this. Cream of Mushroom Soup 1 ounce dried morels, or 2 ounces of fresh morels 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil 1/2 cup portabello mushroom, thin sliced 2 ounces white mushrooms 3 ounces fresh porcini mushrooms, finely sliced 3 shallots, minced 2 garlic cloves, minced Salt & freshly ground white pepper Garnish Fresh rosemary sprigs 1/2 cup dry white wine 4 cups chicken stock 1/2 cup heavy cream 2 tablespoons minced fresh flat-leaf (Italian) parsley Leaves from 1 fresh thyme sprig, minced Leaves from 1 fresh oregano sprig, minced 2 large fresh basil leaves, chopped Four 6-inch round bread loaves Serves 4 CHEF’S NOTES Crystal Cruises serves this soup in oregano bread cups. Any plain or flavored bread loaf may be substituted, but this soup is also delicious simply served in shallow soup bowls. PREPARATION If using dried morels, wash the caps and soak them in warm water for 10 minutes. Remove the stems and discard them. Cut small morels in half and large ones in 3 or 4 pieces. In a medium saucepan over medium heat, heat the olive oil and sauté all the mushrooms for about 3 minutes. Add the shallots and garlic and sauté for 2 minutes. Season with salt and pepper to taste, add the wine, and cook to reduce the liquid by half. Add the stock and bring to a boil. Reduce heat, cover, and simmer the soup for about 25 minutes. In a blender or food processor. purée half the soup until very smooth. Return the purée to the pan. Stir in the parsley, thyme, oregano, and basil and cook for about 2 minutes. Taste and adjust the seasoning. Keep warm. TO SERVE Preheat the oven to 200° F. Cut off the top of each bread loaf. With a large spoon, remove the soft inner part of the bread. Place the loaves on a baking pan and warm in the oven for about 5 minutes. remove the warm bread loaves from the oven and pour the hot soup into the bread cups. Garnish with the rosemary sprigs and serve.