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I love soup — making it, serving it, and savoring it with family and friends. Soup is comfort in a bowl, which is why I planned a soup-and-salad supper for guests at my recent watch party.
I served a large green salad topped with roasted butternut squash (recipe coming next week) and offered three warm bowls: a vegetarian chili, a chicken stew, and this new favorite — a creamy wild mushroom bisque adapted from the New England Soup Factory cookbook.
Soups for the Win!
When feeding a crowd, I stick with reliable recipes. My vegetarian chili and chicken stew are always hits, so I included them. For the third option I tried something new from a cookbook I trust: the Creamy Wild Mushroom Bisque from the New England Soup Factory. It’s a recipe I’ve relied on before and it didn’t disappoint.
The compliments and contented groans at the table told me this was a success. I could easily have doubled the generous recipe and still finished the pot. No exaggeration — this is the best mushroom soup I’ve ever made.
Flavorful and Freestyle-Friendly
The bisque balances earthy mushrooms, fragrant thyme, and a touch of sherry. To lighten it without sacrificing richness, I substituted half-and-half for the original light cream, which reduced the recipe to about 4 WW Freestyle points per serving. Using fat-free half-and-half lowers it further to about 3 points per serving.
Below is the adapted recipe and instructions so you can make it at home.
The best mushroom soup ever.
- Author: Marie Bostwick
- Total Time: 1 hour
- Yield: 10 servings
Description
This recipe is adapted from the New England Soup Factory Cookbook, a trusted source for rich, satisfying soups.
Ingredients
1 T salted butter — 5 points
2 whole cloves garlic — 0 points
1 large Spanish onion, peeled and diced — 0 points
1 cup diced celery — 0 points
1 lb shiitake mushrooms, sliced — 0 points
2 large Portobello mushrooms, sliced — 0 points
¼ lb chanterelle mushrooms, sliced — 0 points
2 lbs Yukon Gold potatoes, peeled and quartered — 20 points
6 cups fat-free chicken stock — 0 points
2 t. fresh thyme leaves — 0 points
1 cup half-and-half — 15 points*
Kosher salt and black pepper to taste — 0 points
2 T dry sherry — 2 points
2 t. Worcestershire sauce — 0 points
Instructions
Melt the butter in a large stockpot over medium-high heat. Add the garlic, onion, and celery and sauté for about 8 minutes, until softened. Add the mushrooms and potatoes and sauté for another 5 minutes.
Pour in the chicken stock and bring the pot to a boil. Reduce the heat to medium and simmer until the potatoes are tender, about 30 minutes. Remove from the heat.
Stir in the thyme, then puree the soup until smooth using an immersion blender or by working in batches in a regular blender or food processor. Once smooth, stir in the half-and-half, Worcestershire sauce, and sherry. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
Serve hot, garnished with a sprinkle of fresh thyme.
Notes
Total points for the recipe = 42, which is about 4 points per serving.
*If you substitute fat-free half-and-half for the regular half-and-half, the points for that ingredient drop from 15 to 5, making the soup approximately 3 points per serving.
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 45 minutes
- Category: Soup
- Method: Stovetop