raw mushroom soup coming up!

I believe mushrooms are the key to creating so many different flavours and textures in vegan cuisine. I was brought up thinking there was only one type of mushroom, but there are loads of gorgeous geneses, each with their own unique tastes that will bring richness to your dishes. Dried mushrooms are absolutely fabulous because they are so versatile- you can put them in a food processor and make a powder that can be added to gravies, soups, stews, sauces, stir-fries and veggie burgers.

You can also reconstitute them in warm water and use them how you would use fresh mushroom, but you can have them all year long instead of when they are in season (for those of us who live in places where mushrooms are only available certain times of the year).

Here are some gourmet dried mushrooms you might want to try:

In a blender:
2 cups white cap Mushrooms (or your favorite mushrooms)
4 cups hot water
2 Tablespoon raw almond butter or 1 T natural peanut butter
1/2 of a small garlic clove (if you add more it will be too strong)
2 teaspoons sea salt
1 Tablespoon olive oil
2 Tablespoons raw tahini

Garnish with paprika and little velvet shank mushrooms (because they're so pretty- they float like tiny umbrellas), or use what ever mushrooms tickle your fancy :)
To make it more creamy you can add half an avocado or 1/2 cup of raw cashews to the blender, but it's optional.

*Dried mushrooms should be soaked in cold or room-temperature water for a few minutes before you make the soup, and you can strain and use the mushroom water in your soup too. Dried mushrooms have a more condensed, strong flavour than fresh mushrooms, so a little goes a long way. Blend for a couple of minutes. And that's it! Makes 2 large bowls.