Puréed Mushroom Soup - NYTimes.com Thick and creamy, with no cream, this tastes so much richer than it is. I use a small amount of milk to thin out the soup, but you can also use stock to thin it, if you don't want to include any dairy. 1/2 ounce dried porcinis 1 leek, white and light green part only, cut in half lengthwise, cleaned thoroughly and sliced or chopped 2 garlic cloves, minced (to taste, optional) 1 1/2 pounds mushrooms (white or cremini) sliced or coarsely chopped 1/3 cup medium grain rice 6 cups water, chicken stock or vegetable stock A bouquet garni made with a bay leaf and a couple of sprigs each thyme and parsley and an optional Parmesan rind 1 tablespoon soy sauce (more to taste) 1 to 2 tablespoons dry sherry, to taste (optional) 1/2 cup milk or additional stock Chopped fresh parsley or torn leaves for garnish Place the dried porcinis in a bowl or pyrex measuring cup and cover with 2 cups boiling water. Let sit for 30 minutes. Line a strainer with cheesecloth and set over a bowl. Drain the porcinis through a cheesecloth-lined strainer. Squeeze the mushrooms over the strainer to extract as much flavorful liquid as possible. Rinse in several changes of water and set aside for another purpose. Measure the mushroom soaking water and add water or stock to make 6 cups. Heat the olive oil over medium heat in a large, heavy soup pot or Dutch oven and add the onion and leek and a pinch of salt. Cook, stirring, until tender and, about 5 to 8 minutes. Do not brown. Add a generous pinch of salt and the garlic and cook, stirring, until the garlic smells fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add the fresh and reconstituted mushrooms and cook, stirring, until they begin to sweat and smell fragrant, 3 to 5 minutes. Add the rice, stock, bouquet garni, and salt to taste, and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat, cover and simmer 45 minutes. Remove the bouquet garni. In batches, blend the soup until smooth. Fill the blender less than half way and cover the top with a towel pulled down tight, rather than airtight with the lid, because hot soup will jump and push the top off if the blender is closed airtight. Return to the pot, taste and adjust salt, and add pepper and the sherry, if using. Add the milk or another half cup of stock and heat through, stirring. If the soup still seems too thick, thin out a little more but remember to taste and adjust seasoning. Serve in espresso cups or in bowls, garnishing each serving with chopped or torn flat-leaf parsley. Yield: 16 shots or 6 to 8 bowls Advance preparation: You can make this a day or two ahead and reheat (you may want to thin it out a little more). Nutritional information per serving (6 servings): 128 calories; 4 grams fat; 1 gram saturated fat; 1 gram polyunsaturated fat; 2 grams monounsaturated fat; 2 milligrams cholesterol; 20 grams carbohydrates; 2 grams dietary fiber; 91 milligrams sodium (does not include salt to taste); 6 grams protein Nutritional information per serving (16 servings): 48 calories; 1 gram fat; 0 grams saturated fat; 0 grams polyunsaturated fat; 1 gram monounsaturated fat; 1 milligram cholesterol; 7 grams carbohydrates; 1 gram dietary fiber; 34 milligrams sodium (does not include salt to taste); 2 grams protein