Wild Mushroom Soup and Crunchy Nut crackers Recipe

Wild Mushroom Soup

Per serving: calories, 192;

Total fat, 5 g;

• 3 1/2 cups canned low-salt chicken broth
• 1 1/2-ounce package dried porcini mushrooms

• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 1/2 cups chopped onions
• 12 ounces assorted wild mushrooms (such as crimini and stemmed shiitake), sliced
• 8 ounces button mushrooms, sliced
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 4 teaspoons chopped fresh thyme or 1 1/2 teaspoons dried
• 4 teaspoons all purpose flour
• 2 cups low-fat (1%) milk

Bring broth to boil in medium saucepan. Remove from heat. Add porcini mushrooms to saucepan; let soak until mushrooms soften, about 20 minutes.

Drain, reserving broth but discarding any sediment in broth. Coarsely chop porcini mushrooms.

Heat olive oil in heavy large pot over medium-high heat. Add chopped onions and sauté until tender, about 7 minutes. Add wild mushrooms and button mushrooms and sauté until brown and tender, about 8 minutes. Add minced garlic, thyme, and porcini and sauté 2 minutes. Sprinkle flour over; stir 1 minute. Gradually whisk in reserved porcini soaking liquid and low-fat milk. Bring to boil, stirring frequently. Reduce heat to medium and boil gently until soup thickens slightly, about 12 minutes. Transfer 1 1/2 cups soup to blender and puree until smooth. Return to pot. Bring soup to simmer.

Season soup to taste with salt and pepper.

Ladle soup into bowls and serve.

Crunchy Nut crackers

Ingredients:

Soak raw nuts and seeds in water for at least 2 hours, let air dry for 30 minutes on paper towels

¨   2 cups raw mixed nuts of your choice: (cashew, almonds, pumpkin seeds, black sesame seed and flax seeds work well)

¨   1 egg and 1 egg white

¨   2 tbsp filtered water

¨   1 1/8 tsp Himalayan salt

Soak raw nuts and seeds in water for at least 2 hours, let air dry for 30 minutes on paper towels

Options: For extra flavor you can add Tabasco sauce, garlic, parmesan cheese (use your imagination)

Top with sea salt, anise seeds, sesame seeds, chia seeds or any other seeds of your choice.

To make:

Preheat the oven at 360°F (180°C).

Line two baking sheets with parchment papers.

Grind nuts into a flour consistency in a blender or food processor (food processor usually works best).

Add egg, water and Himalayan salt and stir around with a wooden spoon until the mixture comes together in quite stiff dough.

Divide the dough into two and place them directly on the parchment papers.

Roll them out to two rectangles as thin as possible. If the dough sticks to the rolling pin you could roll it with parchment paper covering the dough. Use a glass to cut them into round crackers or a knife to cut them in squares.

Spray some water or egg white on them and top with the seeds, salt, cheese etc

Bake for about 10 minutes or less.

Tip: Stay close and keep an eye on the oven, this crackers burn easily, especially when they are very thin. The thinner the better I think

Store them in jars or out in the open if you eat them within the first couple of days.