Creamy Mushroom & Wild Rice Soup

Image: White ceramic serving bowl filled with creamy soup made from mushrooms, wild rice, and other ingredients and toppings.

Description: This creamy, and comforting mushroom and wild rice soup is one of my favorite soups during the winter season. Make yourself a bowl and you’ll understand why!

Yield: Recipe makes 3-4 servings

Ingredients:

• 6 cup water

• 1 1/2 cups milk or non-dairy milk

• 1 - 8 ounce package of Mushrooms, any variety

• 1 1/2 cups uncooked wild rice (not quick-cooking)

• 3 large celery stalks, sliced 1/4 inch thick

• 1 bunch spinach, rough chopped (about 4 cups)

• 1 teaspoon kosher salt, plus more to taste

• 1 teaspoon black pepper, plus more to taste

• 1 tablespoon olive oil

• 4 garlic cloves, minced

• 1 medium yellow onion, chopped

• 2 teaspoons finely chopped fresh thyme

• 1 1/2 tablespoons smoked paprika

• 1 teaspoon hot pepper flake, to taste

• 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper

• 1 tablespoons + 1 teaspoon vegetable bouillon

• 2 bay leaves

• 2 tablespoons salted butter, at room temperature

• 4 tablespoons cornstarch

• 1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar

• 2 tablespoons butter

• 2 teaspoons fresh parsley, chopped

• olive oil, for topping

Directions:

Begin by cooking the wild rice in a small stock pot, according to the package directions. When the rice has about 10 minutes of cooking time left, you will add it to the rest of the soup to finish cooking.

While the rice is cooking, heat a separate 4-6 quart soup pot over medium heat and add 1 tablespoon oil. Add the mushrooms, onions, garlic, celery, smoked paprika, and hot pepper flake to to the soup pot and cook on medium for about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the mushrooms have releases a lot of their liquid and the vegetables have cooked down.

Add the 6 cups of water, bouillon, bay leaf and turn heat to medium high to quickly bring back up to a boil. Once boiling, reduce heat to low and add in the rice that has already been cooking for approximately 15 minutes.

Cook everything together on a low simmer for 10 minutes to bring the flavors together.

Towards the end, increase the heat to medium high. In a separate small bowl, mix the cornstarch and the milk together and set aside. Once the soup is boiling, mix in the cornstarch milk slurry and stir constantly, until the soup thickens. .

Finally, add in the spinach, vinegar, butter, and cook another minute or so, just until the spinach wilts and everything is combined.

Remove from heat and ladle into bowls. Sprinkle on chopped parsley and drizzle with olive oil. Delicious!