Julie Wilson's Wild Rice and Mushroom Soup

(recipe modified from The New York Times Cook Book via a newspaper clipping)

1 cup (about 1 1/2 oz.) dried mushrooms such as shitake, morels, chanterelles or oyster mushrooms
5 cups hot water
2 Tbsp. butter (I used coconut oil)
1/2 cup wild rice
Salt to taste
1 1/2 Tbsp. olive oil
1/2 cup finely chopped onions
2 Tbsp. minced garlic
1 cup finely chopped leeks
2 1/2 Tbsp. flour
1/4 cup dry white wine
3/4 cup vegetable stock
Fresh ground pepper to taste
1/4 tsp. Tabasco sauce
1 cup half-and-half (I used canned coconut milk)
3 oz. fresh mushrooms
Juice of 1/2 lemon
1 tsp. dry sherry
1 tsp. finely chopped thyme leaves, or 1/2 tsp. dried
1/4 cup finely chopped parsley

Put the dried mushrooms in a mixing bowl and add 4 cups of the water.  Let soak 20 minutes or longer.  Drain but reserve the soaking liquid.

Squeeze the drained mushrooms and run under cold water to remove any soil or sand.  Squeeze dry.  Trim off any rough stems.  Chop coarsely.  Set aside.

Line a mixing bowl with a sieve.  Line the sieve with a double thickness of cheesecloth and pour the mushroom soaking liquid through it.  Set aside.

Meanwhile, bring the remaining 1 cup of water to a boil in a small heavy saucepan and add 1 Tbsp. of the butter and the wild rice.  Add salt and cover closely.  When the water returns to the boil, simmer about 50 minutes, or until the rice "blossoms" and the water is absorbed.  Add a little more water if necessary as the rice cooks.

Meanwhile, heat the oil in a soup pot and add the onions, garlic, and leeks.  Cook, stirring often, until the onions are softened.  Add the chopped soaked mushrooms and sprinkle with flour.  Cook over low heat, stirring often, about 4 minutes.  Add the white wine, vegetable stock, salt, pepper, Tabasco and the liquid in which the mushrooms soaked.  Bring to the boil.  Simmer uncovered over low heat about 1 hour.  There should be 5 or 6 cups of soup.

Strain the soup, reserving both the liquid and the solids.  Ladle the solids, a little at a time, into a food processor and blend thoroughly.  Return the soup to the pot; add the reserved liquid and half-and-half.

Meanwhile, cut the fresh mushrooms into thin slices.  There should be about 1 1/2 cups.

Heat the remaining Tbsp. of butter in a small skillet and add the sliced fresh mushrooms.  Sprinkle with lemon juice and cook, stirring, about 1 minute.  Sprinkle with sherry.

Add the sliced mushrooms and wild rice to the soup and bring to the boil.  Add salt and pepper.  Sprinkle with thyme and parsley.  Serve hot in hot soup bowls.

(This is the soup my father makes every year for Christmas.  It is elegant.  I made it this year, and tried a vegan adaptation with the coconut milk, which turned out pretty good.  A few modifications: 1. I strained my mushroom soaking liquid thorough a coffee french press.  2. I blended the solids and the liquid together in a Vitamix. (My dad says he doesn't blend his.)  3. I used dried thyme, and added it earlier, before simmering the soup.)