Mushroom soup

When I get the chance, I bring out my huge cauldron-style cooking pot and cook up a load of stuff that can be frozen in portions for lunch. It doesn't take much more effort to make plenty, and it's so nice jut grabbing something that's ready to go rather than having to think about what to make for a packed lunch every day.

Yesterday I made some mushroom soup because I'm getting a bit fed with the hundreds and hundreds of pots of broccoli and stilton soup I have to work my way through. Mushroom soup always looks a bit brown and boring, but it's very tasty. The beauty of soup is that you can pretty much just chuck in whatever's available then add an amount of liquid to give it the right thickness once cooked. I've tried to note down a kind of recipe below though, with very rough quantities!

Mushroom Soup

• Soak a handfull of dried mushrooms in some stock until soft, remove them and chop finely.
• Heat 600ml milk with around 1.5 - 2L stock until nearly to the boil.
• In a separate pan, fry 2 onions in a large knob of butter until completely soft. Add 2 packs of finely chopped chestnut mushrooms and the rehydrated dried mushrooms and cook for a few more minutes.
• Stir in a handfull of plain flour and cook for 2 more minutes before adding the milk and stock to the mushroom mixture. Season well and simmer for 10 minutes.
• Blend in a food processor until smooth, then stir in a few tablespoons of finely chopped parsely and a glug of sherry.