Best Chantrelle "mushroom" Soup

This is my adaptation of Auguste Escoffier’s Veloute Agnes Sorel, from his classic Guide Culinaire.

What makes this chantrelle soup Escoffier is the fact that I am using a veloute (vel-oo-TAY), a mixture of a simple butter-flour roux and poultry stock. I am also putting the soup together the way Escoffier directs, although I leave the addition of a liaison of eggs and cream up to you. I like it.

What makes this soup me is that I am using last of chanterelles going in the Glen Trium Forest in the Caingroms National Park (see pic below) , a bit of brandy (Armgnac), and a touch of saffron — because I like the idea of it with the golden chanterelles I used.

What if you can’t find fresh chanterelles? Use another fresh mushroom and omit the saffron. Other shrooms I’d suggest would be, in order: porcini, morels, cremini, button.

If you make this with another kind of mushroom and like it, definitely leave me a comment so I can give it a whirl.

Oh, and this is not a Wednesday night quickie recipe. Do this for special occasions or at least on a weekend over a few glasses of vino.

Serves 4-6

VELOUTE
6 cups chicken stock

2 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 tablespoons flour

SOUP
10-16 ounces of fresh chantrelle mushrooms
2 minced shallots
4 tablespoons unsalted butter
3 egg yolks
1/2 cup single cream
1 shot brandy (Armagnac is my preference)
1/4 teaspoon saffron
Salt to taste

Make the veloute. Heat the stock to a bare simmer. In another pot, heat the butter until frothing and stir in the flour. Stirring all the while, let this cook for a few minutes over medium heat. Do not let it brown. Whisk the hot stock into the roux and let this simmer for 20 minutes, stirring often. You want it to slowly cook down by at least 1/3 and be silky looking.

While the veloute is simmering, make the mushroom base. Mince the mushrooms and shallots fine and sweat them in a saute pan over medium heat with a touch of salt. Cook, stirring often, until the shallots are translucent and the mushrooms give up their water.

Crumble the saffron into the brandy and add it to the mushroom base. Turn the heat up to high and toss or stir to combine. Cook until the brandy is nearly gone.

Buzz the mushroom base into a puree in a food processor.

When the veloute is ready, add the mushroom puree and stir well to combine. Cook this at a bare simmer for 10 minutes.

OPTIONAL: If you want a mushroom garnish, slice a few chanterelles lengthwise and sear them in an dry pan until they give up their water and brown.

Beat together the egg yolks and cream, then ladle — a little at a time — some soup base into the egg-cream mixture. This is called a liaison, and you are tempering the eggs with the hot stock slowly, so they do not congeal. Once you have 3-4 ladles of soup into egg-cream mixture, pour it all back into the soup and simmer. DO NOT BOIL.

OPTIONAL: Put this soup through the fine-mesh strainer again to remove any lumps and return to low heat.

To finish the soup, turn off the heat and whisk in the remaining butter.

Serve with the seared mushrooms in the center, with crusty bread and lots and lots of ice cold white wine.

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