Cooking the mushrooms first may seem counterintuitive but this method allows the mushrooms to fully brown and develop full flavor that then dissolves in the soup. If simply poached in the soup broth, the mushrooms never seem to develop as rich a flavor. This soup is “souper” fast if you add already cooked rice to the base. You can cook the rice in the soup, but it will take awhile and the cooked mushrooms should be held out of the pot until the rice is cooked through lest they get rubbery with all that time stewing away.

• 4-8oz fresh mushrooms any variety you like or a mixture
• 2 onions
• 3 garlic cloves
• ¾ C cream sherry (or use white wine, but mushrooms and sherry love each other)
• 1 C cooked wild rice
• 2 tsp salt
• 4 C water or stock
• ½ C cream
• ½ bunch parsley chopped

1. Thinly slice the onions and mushrooms
2. Mince the garlic
3. Heat a glug of oil in a soup pot and cook the mushrooms with a pinch of salt and pepper allowing them to brown fully
4. Add the onion, garlic and sherry and cook until the onions are translucent and the sherry reduced
5. Add the rice, salt and liquid and bring to a boil
6. Reduce heat and add cream let simmer for 5 minutes to mingle
7. Taste and adjust seasoning as desired
8. Serve with a healthy pinch of parsley