It's September, and here in Philly, that means it's mushroom season. About 65% of the mushrooms produced in the United States are grown in Chester County which lies between Philadelphia and the Delaware state line. The next time you buy a cellophane wrapped box at the grocery store, check the label and see where it was grown, there's a good chance they came from a farm within 50 miles of where I live.
There's a small town in Chester County called Kennett Square, and they are the self-proclaimed mushroom capital of not only Pennsylvania, but of the whole world. Every September, they hold a two day festival dedicated to the mushroom. On New Year's Eve, they even drop an 800 pound mushroom instead of a ball at midnight to ring in the new year. All of the shops and restaurants in town have mushroom themed merchandise and mushroom dishes on their menus.
Unfortunately, with my crazy work schedule, while I have had a chance to visit Kennett Square, I have not yet made it to the festival. But, when I was in culinary school, one of my fellow students was able to arrange a tour for our class at his family's mushroom farm. I must admit, when we first arrived, I was a bit confused. The farm consisted of several long, low sheds, each at least 100 feet long, with no windows. I kept looking around for the mushroom "fields", but all we saw were these sheds. They took us around to the end of one of the sheds where there was a door. As we stepped inside the sheds, the farmers turned on the lights, and I could see that the shed was literally like an iceberg--only a small fraction of it was visible above ground. The buildings were actually sunk several feet into the ground, and once my eyes adjusted to the dimness, I could see trays and trays of mushrooms growing on shelves that ran the full length of the shed, several tiers down. It was cool and slightly damp inside the shed, and because it is built mostly below ground, the temperature and humidity stay very consistent which I learned is important for growing mushrooms.
As my classmates and I walked up and down the rows, we saw all sorts of mushrooms. Button mushrooms, both brown and white, were growing in the flat trays. Shiitake and oyster mushrooms were growing from hanging "logs"--cylindrical shaped structures that were filled with the growing medium and about 3 feet long--sprouting in clusters straight out the sides. The farmers encouraged us to pick some of the mushrooms and taste them as we went along. I'll admit, I love mushrooms, if they're cooked. I'm not a huge fan of them raw. But, when I started culinary school, I vowed that I would never not taste something because I was afraid of how it might taste, that as a chef, I needed to get over any personal aversions. (I know, feel free to roll your eyes.) So, I picked a white button mushroom and took a small bite. I can't even begin to describe the flavor, it didn't taste like any raw mushroom I had ever eaten before. Another one of those food experiences that I will always remember.
So, in honor of mushroom season, here is one of my favorites, Brandied Mushroom Bisque. Enjoy!
Brandied Mushroom Bisque
You can use any type of mushroom for the soup, but I really encourage you to use a variety. For this batch, I used a mixture of white and brown button, shiitake, oyster, and beech. Don't be alarmed by the sheer volume of the mushrooms called for in the recipe, as you'll see, they tend to shrink as they cook down.
Makes 8 to 10 servings
For the bisque:
8 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 stalks of celery, chopped
1 large leek, white and pale green parts, cleaned and sliced*
2 large shallots, chopped
3 garlic cloves, sliced
10 cups (about 1 ½ pounds) assorted mushrooms, trimmed and sliced
¼ cup all purpose flour
½ cup white wine (I prefer sauvignon blanc)
½ cup brandy (sherry, marsala or madeira will also work)
8 cups chicken stock, low or no sodium
2 sprigs of fresh thyme
1 bay leaf
½ cup heavy cream
juice of half a lemon
Kosher salt and black pepper to taste
For the garnish:
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 cups sliced mushrooms
thinly sliced chives
Kosher salt and black pepper
To make the bisque: Add the butter to a large saucepan set over medium to medium-high heat. When the butter has completely melted and the bubbling and foaming has subsided, add the celery, leeks and shallots and cook, stirring, until the vegetables have softened and become translucent, about 5 to 7 minutes. Season with a generous pinch of salt. Add the garlic and cook until fragrant, about 2 minutes more. Add the mushrooms and stir. Mushrooms go through a very predictable cooking process, they start by absorbing all of the moisture in the pan. Resist the temptation to add more butter or oil to the pan, just keep stirring. Within a few minutes, the mushrooms will start to release their moisture back into the pan. Continue to cook and stir until the mushrooms are well softened about 3 minutes more.
Sprinkle the flour over the vegetables in the pan and stir to coat. Add in the wine and brandy and continue to cook until the liquid has reduced and thickened. Add the stock, thyme sprigs and bay leave and mix through. Reduce the heat to medium-low and bring the liquid to a high simmer. Continue to cook, stirring occasionally, until the mushrooms are very tender, about 10 minutes.
Remove the pan from the heat, remove the thyme stems and bay leaf. Working in batches, transfer the soup to a blender or food processor and puree until smooth. Return the pureed soup to the saucepan and return to low heat. Stir in the cream, lemon juice, and season generously with salt and black pepper.
To make the sauteed mushroom garnish: Add the butter to a medium skillet set over medium-high heat. When the butter has completely melted and the bubbling and foaming has subsided, add the sliced mushrooms and saute until the mushrooms have released their juices. Continue to saute, turning as necessary, until the mushrooms are nicely browned. Season with salt and pepper.
To finish and serve: Ladle the soup into bowls and top with some of the sauteed mushrooms. Sprinkle with chives and serve.
*A note on cleaning leeks: Leeks are very dirty vegetables. They grow in very sandy soil, and the dirt and grit can get deeply embedded into the leaves of the leek. To clean them, first trim away the roots and dark green leaves. Split the leek in half lengthwise, then thinly slice. Place the leeks in a large bowl of cool water and swirl, separating the pieces by hand as necessary. Allow the leeks to sit in the water for about 10 minutes. All of the sand and grit will settle to the bottom of the bowl while the leeks remain floating on top.
Scoop the leeks out of the bowl with a slotted spoon. Don't be tempted to pour them through a colander or you'll simply dump the sand and grit back on top of the leeks.
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