Thursday, January 6, 2011

Slow down and diet.... like the French

For me, the month of December is 31 days of excused indulgence.  Dinners with family always include amazing food, fantastic wine and all the love your heart can take.   When the new year rolls around, I'm poised and ready to take on some challenges and lose the inevitable five to seven pounds picked up along the way. Determined to continue the French Friday's with Dorie, I flipped through the January recipe selections in search of something quasi diet-friendly.  After reluctantly vetoing the chocolate cake, I selected the paris mushroom soup.  Who knew I was in for not only a great lunch but the solution to a holiday heartache.

I have hosted two Thanksgiving dinners in my life both involving tears and a runny version of Martha Stewart's green bean casserole....now I know why: impatience.  Fresh off a wonderful holiday, my soul was a bit more patient than usual and I didn't rush through my recipe.  I patiently waited as my mushrooms released and absorbed their liquid. ALL of their liquid.  My, how the mushrooms shrink... my, how much liquid I have been leaving in my green bean casserole...my, how much stress I have mistakenly taken out on my husband who interestingly enough always tells me to slow down.


After properly reducing the mushrooms I added the white wine and once again let the liquid fully absorb.  At this stage, I was a mere 20 minutes and a swirl of the immersion blender from a lovely meal.  I took Dorie's recommendation and placed the raw salad into the bowl before ladling the hot soup atop.  My spring onions were a bit too strong, however the variety of textures gave this simple soup beautiful depth.

This recipe was fantastic, and though mushrooms are not a favorite in my house, I will keep it on file for holidays and dinner parties.  I have come to love Around my French Table not only for the thoughtful instruction, but the array of recipes that call for a short list of ingredients and produce a dish with immense flavor.  Dare I say that Around my French Table is not only teaching me French cuisine, but  flavors in general?  Seems high time to slow down and enjoy 2011.

14 comments:

  1. Such a great recipe! And the perfect way to start of the New Year!

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  2. Wasn't this delicious??? Glad you enjoyed, too!

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  3. I love that this recipe is really a bunch of different flavors- just in the french tradition! Your soup looks great

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  4. It was such a delicious soup and I'm glad you liked it! It is a perfect soup to eat after all the rich foods we all ate over the holidays. Yours looks great!

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  5. Great post! While I didn't like this soup, I agree that Dorie's cookbook is introducing me to new flavors.

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  6. I was surprise how long it took to reduce the liquid too. Glad we both waited. Good things come to those who wait I guess!

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  7. It really IS a virtue for cooking soups. Esp. Onion Soup so get ready. Oh, and I wrote about how the soup is even better the next day...which takes even more patience. Great post.

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  8. I loved the soup though I did not put the 'salad' in the bottom preferring to quickly saute a mushroom and serve it on top of the soup with some Greek yogurt. It not only made for a great addition to the taste; but broke up that sea of brown just a little bit!

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  9. I loved it too. Yours looks wonderful. I enjoyed seeing your photos and reading your post.

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  10. How funny! I learned the same lesson. I do a lot of sauteed mushrooms, but always leave all the liquid...now I know to wait just a bit longer (a bit more than the 3 minutes Dorie said). Your soup is beautiful!

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  11. Excellent advice - we all need to slow down and enjoy every day. :) Your soup looks lovely!

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  12. Isn't it amazing what a little patience can accomplish? I think most of my cooking debacles have involved trying to rush things through. I enjoyed your narrative.

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  13. Slow down and savor the mushrooms. :) Lovely soup!

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  14. Sometimes it feels like we're in a really great weekly cooking class. I feel like I've learned a lot, not just techniques, but also that my palate is broader than I thought. Great process photos!

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