Union Square Cafe Creamless Mushroom Soup a la Arlene

My Mom dazzles her guests when she serves this soup. It's delicious, low fat, very easy to make and stays very well in the freezer. (I recommend freezing it in portions so you can enjoy it on your own too!)

Ingredients

Olive Oil

2 Tbsp butter

1 c sliced onions

1 c sliced leeks (white and light green part only)

1 c peeled, sliced carrots
1 c sliced celery
1 tsp fresh thyme

2 lbs cleaned, sliced white mushrooms

1 lb mix of oyster, shitake, cremini mushrooms

6 c chicken stock

1 1/2 tsp salt

1/8 tsp fresh ground pepper

1 Bayleaf

Optional:

Fried onion rings

Fresh cream

Minced chives

Directions

1. Place butter, olive oil, salt and pepper into the bottom center of a soup pan, heat on medium-high heat until hot.

2. Add sliced onion and leeks, let cook for a few minutes.

3. Add carrots and celery, let cook for 10 minutes, stirring to make sure new ingredients are coated.

4. Add mushrooms, bay leaf and thyme and let cook for a few minutes, stirring to make sure new ingredients are coated.

5. Add chicken broth, bring to simmer and leave cooking for 30 minutes.

6. Take bay leaf out.

7. Puree (it's easier if you do this after the soup has cooled a bit), add optional toppings, serve.

Sour Cream Coffee Cake

I first saw this recipe in the RSVP section of Bon Appetit magazine, May 1987 and fell in love with it. It has become a staple in our family of recipes, and our most requested dessert ever. Aunt Reba in Florida loves it as well, and coincidentally made it for us as a welcome cake when we went to visit... Great minds (and palates) think alike.


TOPPING:
1 c. sugar
1/2 c chopped walnuts
2 tsp cinammon
2 T shredded coconut


Directions: Use pulse setting to finely chop the walnuts and add the other ingredients until blended.


BATTER:
2 c. sugar
1 c. unsalted butter (2 sticks)
1/4 tsp salt
2 tsp baking soda
2 tsp vanilla
4 large eggs
3 c. flour
2 c. sour cream (pt)

DIRECTIONS

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees, using middle rack

2. Use heavy duty (Kaiser brand) 12 cup bundt pan

3. Spray Pam in the pan, and dust with the topping

4. Cream softened BUTTER with SUGAR , using pastry blending blade of mixer

5. Add SALT, BAKING SODA, VANILLA and EGGS, on medium speed

6. Add FLOUR and SOUR CREAM alternately until well blended.

7. Add 1/3 BATTER, 1/4 TOPPING, and alternate batter and topping, ending with BATTER.
(be sure to reserve some topping for decorating the cake after it is baked).

8. Insert a knife and swirl it around to gently mix the batter and the topping into swirls

BAKE for 55- 1 hr 10 minutes, depending on the oven...

NOTE: You can freeze this cake... enjoy!!!!