Hearty Onion and Mushroom Soup

For a cold fall day, we were looking for a heartier vegan onion soup. This recipe uses a combination of spices, amino acid, maple syrup and porcini mushrooms to bring a wonderful robustness to a classic soup.

If you don’t have the “beef roast spice”, substitute 3 tsp of your own mix of paprika, mustard, fennel, oregano, sage, salt and pepper. We don’t recommend completely omitting this blend of spice, though, as it contributes greatly to the hearty flavor! The California pepper can be substituted with milder peppercorns, like pinks and greens, though it won’t impart exactly the same sweet flavor.

Ingredients

1 sweet onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, diced
3 sweet onions, thinly sliced
2 tsp olive oil

3 bay leaves
2 tsp umami powder
2 tsp thyme
3 tsp beef roast spice (Penzeys)
1 tsp California pepper blend (Penzeys)

2 tsp Bragg’s amino acid
2 tsp light maple syrup

4 oz dried porcini mushrooms
8 cups water

Preparation

Rehydrate mushrooms in 1 cup water, and set aside.

Heat oil over high heat, add diced onion and garlic. Stir until carmelized. Add ½ cup water, and cook down until the onions form a crust. Add ½ cup water and repeat.

Add remaining onions, spices, amino acid and maple syrup, along with one cup of water. Bring to a boil. Add water from reconstituted mushrooms. Dice mushrooms and add.

Add remaining water, and return to a boil. Cover and let simmer for 2 hours. Add water if needed.

Serve hot with bread and melted cheese.