Creamy Beef and Mushroom Soup

Here is my first recipe in a series featuring Kitchen Pride's mushrooms, which they kindly sent to me. I was so excited to try their Mushroom Medley, which features white, baby bella, portabella, and shiitake mushrooms. I thought they would be great in a soup because each different mushroom would provide its own layer of flavor. I have been wanting to make this soup for a while! The inspiration for this soup was my favorite canned soup when I was a kid, which was Campbell's Beefy Mushroom Soup. I'm not sure if they still make Beefy Mushroom because I don't go down the canned soup aisle much anymore. Basically, it was a beef-based broth soup with tiny bits of mushroom and beef. My mom used it in her broccoli, cheese, and rice casserole instead of cream of mushroom soup and I loved it. This homemade version is a bit more grown up because of the mixed mushrooms, red wine, and touch of cream. As an extra step, I pulsed my immersion blender into the soup to create a thicker texture and also create little pieces of mushroom and tiny shreds of beef, just like the canned soup had.

This soup would be really great as a first course in smaller portions or as a meal and is perfect for those cool fall days that are approaching.

• Please look for Kitchen Pride's mushrooms the next time you are in the store. Here is what the label looks like:
• Creamy Beef and Mushroom Soup
• 1 tbsp pastured butter, or other oil of choice, divided
• 1 medium onion, diced
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 8-oz package mixed wild mushrooms, such as cremini, button, shiitake, and portabellas, cut or torn into bite-sized pieces
• 1 lb lean cubed beef stew meat, preferably grass-fed
• 2 tbsp low-sodium tomato paste
• 1 cup dry red wine
• 64 oz low-sodium beef broth
• 1 tsp dried sage
• 1/2 tsp dried thyme
• 4 tbsp heavy whipping cream, optional (or coconut milk)
• salt and pepper, to taste

1. Heat a large saucepan or 4-qt stockpot over medium heat. Melt in half the butter (or oil) then add the onion, garlic, and mushrooms and cook until tender; remove to the side.

2. Heat remaining butter (or oil) and raise heat to medium-high. Season meat with salt and pepper, then add to the pan and brown on all sides; you may have to work in batches.

3. Blend the tomato paste into the browned meat and rendered juices until it becomes a slightly darker red in color and coats the meat. Return the cooked vegetables to the pan, add the wine, broth, sage, and thyme. Bring to boil over high heat, then reduce to simmer over medium to medium-low heat. Cover with a lid and simmer 1 1/2-2 hours, stirring occasionally.

4. Once the beef is tender to the bite, season to taste with salt and pepper. As an optional step to slightly thicken the soup, take about a cup out and puree it in a food processor or blender and add it back to the rest of the soup. Or, do a few quick pulses with an immersion blender.

5. Remove the pan from heat and blend in the cream. Serve immediately.

Servings per recipe: 4 main-course servings

Per serving:

Calories: 377.7

Fat: 19.7 g

Saturated fat: 8.8 g

Cholesterol: 129.0 mg

Sodium: 194 mg

Carbohydrate: 10.3 g

Fiber: 1 g

Sugars: 5.1 g

Protein: 36.8 g