Cooking to the Tune of Fall-La-La

Ah, Fall, that glorious time of year where leaves change to vibrant shades of reds, yellows, and oranges, leaving a hint of whimsy in the air. Fall, where temperatures begin to cool and cozying up next to a fire with a cup of your favorite hot drink becomes a nightly tradition. Fall, that time of year when…oh wait, this is Florida, where Fall is sadly cheated of these seasonal changes. Instead, we’re left with leaves that change to varying shades of brown and muddy yellow and a change, not in temperature, but in levels of humidity. The only thing creating whimsy here is the overabundance of pumpkin spice flavored everything. However, this year, I plan on jumping off that pumpkin spice bandwagon and wish to take your taste buds on a walk through the woods with an ingredient that thrives in all that Florida Fall has to offer: mushrooms.

Mushrooms are the embodiment of Fall in Florida. They love to grow in warm, humid environments. They’re also the perfect earthy, rustic flavor for the brown demeanor of our seasonal changes. That is why I created a dish that I like to call the Mushroom Melody Soup. (Named for the fact that it literally sings the praises of Florida Fall and not because I have a tendency to say “melody” instead of “medley.” Cough.) So, now, without further adieu, on to the recipe! 1 ½ cups water ½ cup white wine 1 package of dried porcini mushrooms*, reconstituted 2 tbsp olive oil 1 clove of garlic, minced ½ cup onion, diced 1 package of gourmet mushroom mix* 1 package of portabella mushrooms* 2 sprigs of rosemary, chopped 1 cup unsweetened almond milk salt and pepper to taste *All mushrooms were purchased at Publix, so I used their pre-packaged varieties and am unsure of the amounts. If you are the type who needs to know exact amounts, let me know, and I will gladly find this information out for you. To start, combine the water and wine in a bowl, add the dried porcini mushrooms, and let sit for at least 30 minutes. This process is called reconstituting and it basically “plumps” the mushrooms back to their original state. Do not use these or any other dried mushrooms without doing this first. (For this, I used Blue Nun Rivaner Riesling, which I prefer because it isn’t as dry as other Rieslings.)

Next, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Once hot, add the onions and cook them until they sweat (or begin to release moisture). Add the garlic and cook it until you can smell it. Add both the package of gourmet mushroom mix and the package of portabella and cook until browned. At this point, I prefer to add a little salt and pepper, as it helps to both flavor the ingredients and it releases more of the moisture in the onions and mushrooms.

Hopefully, by now, you should still have some of the wine left in the bottle. Pour some of this into the pan in order to deglaze it. This helps to release the little bits of food (or fond, if you want to sound fancy and classically trained) from the bottom of the pan.

Next, pour your water, wine, and reconstituted mushroom mixture into your pot and bring it to a boil. Once boiled, remove the pot from the heat. Add the almond milk and rosemary, season to taste, and puree. Pour your creamy, yumminess into a bowl, serve, and enjoy! Now, this soup does have a strong, earthy flavor, which, while I enjoy, may be too much for some. To tone it down, you can simply add a drizzle of honey to add some sweetness or do what I did and pair it with some fresh potato rolls and aged Asiago cheese.