Wet spring weather - warm soup!

Spring has come to Holland. We are greeted each morning with birdsong and the bulb flowers are starting to poke up through the cold earth to say hello. We put our garden pots that were planted up with bulbs last autumn back out in the garden. They were so ready to come out into some sunlight but it has been far too cold up to this week.


Now I say sunlight but this week has been rather gray and dreary. It is our normal Dutch winter weather and normally we would already be seeing many bulbs in bloom by now but it has been colder this winter. In December, I received a potted helleborus from a dear friend. It was struggling having to go in and out of the dark shed since it was so cold. We really thought it was dead as it was looking very sorry for itself but, suddenly, it decided that spring was a good reason to perk back up and start blooming again. Now it has a place of pride by my front door.

Now I am not turning this into a food blog but enjoy sharing recipes with you. I think that cooking is a big part of homekeeping. I love creating a nourishing meal from totally fresh ingredients. The chill in the air makes us long for a bowl of hot soup so here is my recipe for fresh mushroom soup. Once you have made this simple recipe, you will never want to open a can of mushroom soup in your life.

You will need:
250 gr fresh mushrooms
4 spring onions (you can also use a medium regular onion for this)
butter and olive oil
2 tablespoons flour
750 ml vegetable bouillon
salt and pepper
low fat half and half (koffiemelk)
fresh parsley
warm oven baked bread

Chop the mushrooms...

Chop the spring onions and cook them in a combination of butter and olive oil...

Add the mushroom to the pan and cook...

When your mushrooms are cooked, mix in the flour until it coats the mushroom and onions then pour 750 ml (3 cups) vegetable bouillon a little at a time stirring well. Salt and pepper to taste. Simmer this for about 15 minutes and then add about 3/4 cup low fat half and half (koffiemelk). You can use low fat milk but we find it does not give the soup a nice creamy taste.

Serve the hot soup with fresh parsley and warm oven baked bread. I served warm Italian black olive ciabatta this time.

Edit: This soup is for two people. We never have any leftover after dinner so if you have a large family or want leftovers, do make more. I try to make our dinners exactly right for the two of us so we are eating fresh each night.

"As the days grow short, some faces grow long. But not mine. Every autumn, when the wind turns cold and darkness comes early, I am suddenly happy. It's time to start making soup again."
~ Leslie Newman