In the Czech Republic, and in fact throughout most of Europe, harvesting mushrooms - yes, it's called mushrooming - is an important cultural and culinary tradition. Some would even consider it to be a national pastime.
Klara Stefflova, a native of the Czech Republic and Penn Medicine researcher, has succeeded in translating this custom from her homeland to the U.S.
In the spirit of passing on the tradition, Klara exposed me to the glories of mushroom hunting on a recent trip we took together to the White Mountains in New Hampshire.
With an estimated 1,500 varieties of mushrooms available worldwide, it can be a difficult task to distinguish between the edible and non-edible (even deadly) varieties. But Klara was an adept guide, showing me that mushrooming is a tasty way to become more closely involved in the harvesting and preparation of your food.
Even if you can't go mushrooming, Klara has generously shared her traditional family recipe for mushroom soup so that you too can experience the flavors of the hunt. Though a variety of mushrooms are typically available both fresh and dried in grocery stores, try specialty stores such as Di Bruno Brothers, Whole Foods, and Reading Terminal Market for rarer ingredients.
Czech Mushroom and Potato Soup
Makes 5 servings
1 teaspoon unsalted butter
4 medium potatoes
2 medium carrots
1 small parsley root (also known as Hamburg parsley, Dutch parsley, turnip-rooted parsley, rock selinen, and rock parsley) or parsnip
2 to 4 garlic cloves
1/3 bouillon cube (any variety) or a piece of beef or 1 teaspoon Vegeta (a mixture of spices and vegetables for soup, originally from Croatia)
Optional: approx. 10 brussel sprouts
2 oz mixed dried mushrooms
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon marjoram (preferred) or oregano (alternative)
« teaspoon caraway seeds
Parsley leaves for decoration
Peel and cut potatoes, carrots, and parsley root into cubes (medium dice for potatoes, small dice for carrots and parsley root). Chop garlic into small pieces. In a medium/large sauce pan, melt a teaspoon of butter and fry the cubes of potatoes a little, so they get a bit of color. Then add the carrots, parsley, and garlic. Add 4 cups of water to the vegetables. Add in salt, caraway seeds, bouillon/beef/soup mix spice (Vegeta) and optional brussel sprouts and boil for 30 minutes.
Meanwhile, boil a cup of water and pour it over the dried mushrooms to pre-soak. Drain the water after 30 minutes, cut the mushrooms into large pieces, and add the mushrooms to the soup.
Boil for another 15 minutes or until both mushrooms and potatoes are soft. If you like a heavier soup, you can whisk together flour and water in a separate bowl and then add these to the soup to increase its thickness. As a last step, add a teaspoon of marjoram (or oregano). This needs to be done at the very end since marjoram quickly becomes bitter when cooked for a long time.
Serve with freshly cut parsley leaves sprinkled over the steaming soup.
