By Victoria Q

Soups are healthy and fast to make. All you need to do is to go through your fridge, pick out any leftover veggies, add them into a large pot, then add vegetable stock and some spices, stir, cook and…. That’s all! Not only they’re easy to make, but also perfect to warm your body up during cold days.

In this recipe, I’m going to show you how to cook a creamy, vegan-friendly, easy to make, and seriously yummy Creamy Mushroom Soup. Pair it with some crusty garlic bread, this creamy mushroom soup makes the perfect appetizer.

Bonus: Garlic Bread recipe is included here too! Only takes up to 8 minutes and you’ve got the freshly baked crusty garlic bread on the side!

Assorted type of mushrooms: Mushrooms like shiitake, oyster, king oyster, porcini, cremini, and portobello have a stronger taste than white button mushrooms. I use king oyster and shiitake mushrooms here. It does taste slightly bitter and very rich in flavour which I love a lot. You can try any other type of mushrooms you like. Also, you can do experiment with various kinds of combinations and find the best perfect type of mushrooms based on your taste.

Non-dairy milk: Full-fat coconut milk or coconut cream will add creaminess, and richness to the soup with its coconut flavour. If you don’t like coconut milk or cream, substitute to soy milk, or cashew milk is also a good option.

Herbs: I found that a simple combination of thyme and parsley works the best in this mushroom soup. I like to keep my soup rich in mushroom flavour with slight bitterness and some herbs to bring out the classic flavour. If you prefer your soup to be even stronger in taste, feel free to combine 3-4 types of other herbs such as rosemary, oregano, basil, chives, and tarragon.

Ingredients:

Mushroom soup:

• 300g assorted mushrooms, sliced
• 1 onion, minced
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 tablespoon unsalted vegan butter
• 3 cups vegetable broth
• 2 tablespoons cornstarch
• 1 cup non-dairy milk
• 1 teaspoon dried thyme
• A pinch of salt and pepper
• 1 teaspoon dried parsley (sprinkle on top)

Garlic bread:

• 1 French loaf
• ½ cup unsalted vegan butter
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 ½ teaspoon dried parsley

Instructions:

1. In a large pot, add butter, onion, garlic, thyme, and sauté over medium heat till softened. Add mushroom and cook for another 5 minutes.
2. Then, add vegetable broth, close the lid, and bring it to boil. Once boiled, reduce to low heat, add non-dairy milk and simmer for 10 minutes. Stir occasionally.
3. Meanwhile, prepare garlic bread by cutting the French loaf into any size you wanted. Then, melt butter in the microwave for 1 minute. Combine garlic, parsley and melted butter together and brush over the bread. Bake at 350ºF or 180ºC for 8 minutes.
4. Back to the soup, after 10 minutes of simmering, add salt and pepper while tasting.
5. In a small bowl, mix cornstarch with a few tablespoons of cool water. Then, add into the soup a bit at a time while stirring, till you get desired consistency.
6. Remove from the heat, sprinkle parsley on top and serve with freshly baked garlic bread.
7. To store: Keep the leftover soup and garlic bread in a sealed glass storage container separately and keep in the fridge for up to 3 days.