I had some dried porcini leftover from another recipe I ended up not making, and a container of mushrooms I wanted to make into a soup or sauce, but we are out of cream and have very little milk, so I made up a little something for lunch today. Hearty, flavorful, delicious!

INGREDIENTS
2oz dried mushrooms of choice (I had porcini but a blend is a good choice, too)
4 Tbsp butter
1 8oz container whole or sliced fresh mushrooms of choice, sliced (also porcini for me)
1 shallot minced
3 cloves garlic minced
1 cup chicken or vegetable broth
1 19oz can Cento white kidney beans or similar of choice
1/4 cup flour
1 Tbsp olive oil
1 cup milk (or skip if you wish)
2 Tbsp dried thyme
salt and pepper to taste

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Put dried mushrooms in a heat proof bowl and pour hot water over them to cover (boiling works, but not necessary). Push gently down with a fork to submerge them and let soak while you do other steps.
2. Add butter to pan over medium heat and melt. Add sliced mushrooms and cook for 7-9 minutes until browning and cooked.
3. Meanwhile, mince garlic and shallot. Add chicken stock and undrained can of beans to a second pot and warm over low heat. Add a little salt and 1 Tbsp thyme, stir to combine and leave warm until needed.
4. Add flour to pan of mushrooms and stir to combine about a minute, thickening any juices and clinging to mushrooms.
5. Add the shallot and garlic to the mushrooms along with the Tbsp of olive oil. Stir frequently over medium-low heat, softening the shallot and garlic without allowing anything to burn.
6. Put some paper towel or coffee filter in a fine mesh sieve, then strain the liquid from the rehydrated mushrooms into to pan with the mushroom mix. Squeeze to get excess out, then add rehydrated mushrooms to rest of the mushrooms. Reduce heat on mushrooms to medium-low. 
7. Remove 1 cup of the bean and chicken stock mixture to another bowl or large wide mouth jar. Take 1 cup of the mushroom mix and add to this. Pour 1 cup milk in and blend with an immersion blender until smooth.
8. Mix together all parts--the mushroom mixture, the beans and stock, and the bean/mushroom blend, stir to combine. Salt and pepper to taste.
9. Serve up and enjoy!

1 lb mushrooms of choice, whole or cut into chunks
1 lb carrots, cut into chunks
1/2 a large onion, cut into chunks
3 cloves garlic, skin on
3-4 cups homemade poultry stock
Herbs of choice (I used thyme and marjoram, could use sage, rosemary, etc)
salt and pepper to taste
olive oil

Set oven to 425

• Put veggies on parchment-lined cookie sheet. Drizzle with olive oil, sprinkle with salt and pepper, toss to coat.
• Put garlic cloves into square of foil, drizzle with oil, close into packet and place on sheet with veggies.
• Roast for 25-30 minutes until veggies are softened
• Let cool slightly then squeeze garlic from its skin. Transfer veggies and garlic to bowl and add 1 cup stock, blend with immersion blender -OR- transfer to food processor and blend with 1 cup stock; work in batches if needed.
  Continue to add stock 1/2 cup at a time to get desired consistency. (I used 3 cups for mine)
• Add herbs of choice and salt and pepper to taste.
• Serve with a dollop of sour cream and some crusty bread on the side.

I could see a LOT of variations on this theme, adding more veggies to the mix (roasting red peppers along with the other veggies for instance sounds delicious), changing up the herbs used, setting aside from of the veggies to chop into smaller pieces and keeping them whole for a more chunky soup, pairing with rice, quinoa, or lentils....the list goes on. And of course what mushrooms you use will change the earthiness/nuttiness factors in the soup as well. Oh, nutty! What about some ground walnuts in the mix? So many possibilities. It was super simple, fast enough to make just before company arrived, made the house smell fantastic and was easy cleanup.

1 spaghetti squash 2.5-3lbs
1 lb chanterelles
5 Tbsp butter
3 garlic cloves, minced
3/4 cup cream + 1/4 cup milk (or 1 cup 1/2 n 1/2)
1/4 cup grated parmesan
salt and pepper

You can prepare the spaghetti squash ahead of time if you like.   There are two methods that work great:
Microwave method: 
Poke the skin of the squash a dozen times, place in a microwave safe dish.  Microwave 6 minutes, then using a hot mitt, flip over and microwave another 6 minutes. Make sure when you push on the skin that it is squishy. If it doesn't give under your prodding, microwave a minute at a time until you get the result you need.

Oven method:
Line baking dish or pan with foil. Poke squash a dozen times, place in dish.  Cook in oven at 375 until it is lightly browned on portions of the skin and is squishy when prodded (again, use a hot mitt!).

You can cool for a few minutes and place in the fridge to wait until you need it, or simply let it rest and cool until you can handle it and then finish prepping it.

Preheat the oven to 375F. Butter a shallow baking dish, like a Pyrex dish.

While squash is baking/cooking, clean the chanterelles with a brush or rinse and toss gently. Slice them into small pieces as you melt half of the butter in a large saute pan. Add the mushrooms and cook over medium heat until tender, about 10 minutes. Season with salt and pepper, then add the garlic and half-and-half. Adjust the heat to simmer the liquid gently for 10 minutes. Remove from the heat and set aside.

When the squash is done, cut in half, coop out the seeds and discard, then scoop the strands of spaghetti squash into a serving bowl. Toss the strands with the rest of the butter and season with salt and pepper. Top with the mushroom mixture, then give it a good shaving of Parmesan cheese over the top.

Return to the oven until heated through and the top is crisped and browned in places, 15 - 20 minutes. Serve hot.