Photo by Elinoar Shavit
Provenance of Dish
This soup is the elegant vegetarian relative of my Passover chicken soup with matzo-meal dumplings, and in recent years it has matched the original in popularity. I make sure to make the soup 24-48 hours before serving it, as it tastes better the next day and the preparation is a tad long, and the dumplings on the day of serving. This soup is well worth the effort. Cerioporus squamosus (Dryad Saddle) is a beautiful shelf mushroom that fruits twice a year, in spring and fall, often in large quantities. In spring, it is a worthy consolation prize for those who fail to locate morels. I gather only the young fruit bodies with tight pores, which can be small or fully expanded. I use only the tender edges of the youngest fruitbodies for preparations like marinated mushrooms, in stews, and for stuffing the matzo-meal dumplings in this recipe. I slice and dry all the tougher parts of the young fruitbodies, stems included, which I later use for this soup. I only use dry squamosus pieces; the flavor and smell of the fresh mushroom is too strong in this preparation. Even so, the dried Dryad Saddle have a strong smell. Please ignore it, as this smell goes away in the process of cooking. This soup is delicious served with the matzo-meal dumplings alone, but it is even better with Dryad Saddle stuffed dumplings. Fresh and tender shitake or even morels make a good alternative stuffing for the dumplings. I make 2 versions of this stuffing: a mild version, and a robust one. It is a matter of preference since the soup itself is mild, and depends on my mood. I've included both versions.
Recipe
Ingredients
For C. squamosus (Dryad Saddle) soup:
1-gallon plastic bag full of dry slices of Dryad Saddle (Cerioporus squamosus) – I fill the bag as full as I can.
1-quart (32 fluid oz.) of good vegetable stock or low sodium chicken stock.
2 extra-large onions, root-rosettes removed, outer dry skins on (for better color) – cut into large chunks.
1 large leek, both the white and nice-looking green parts, cut lengthwise into 4 sections and washed well.
4 large carrots – peeled and cut into chunks.
1 large parsnip root – peeled and cut into chunks.
1 large green bell pepper – seeds and stem removed, cut into 4 pieces.
3-4 celery ribs, green leaves removed, cut into chunks (use only 3 if using only the dark green outside stems of the celery).
1/2 bunch of flat-leaf parsley, all stems included (a large handful or about 20 long sprigs) – washed well.
3 large fresh dill sprigs, stems included – washed well.
3 cloves of garlic – unpeeled and halved lengthwise.
6 fresh sprigs of thyme with stems, washed well.
2 large dry bay-leaves.
1 tbsp. Italian Seasonings (a combination of dried herbs without lavender)
1 tbsp. freshly ground black pepper
1/2 teaspoon crushed hot red pepper flakes
3 tablespoons powdered chicken flavored stock, I use Osem, or 2-3 Knorr chicken flavored bouillon cubes, smashed.
2 tbs. catchup, for a deeper color.
6 tbs. extra virgin olive oil.
Salt to taste – I add 1 tbsp. salt at the beginning of cooking and correct flavors at the end.
Finely chopped Italian parsley leaves for garnish.
Enough fresh water to cover the ingredients in the pot by 3-4 inches.
For the matzo-meal dumplings:
1 cup Manischewitz matzo meal (I like its consistency)
4 large eggs
1 tsp. kosher salt
4 tbsp. canola, olive oil, or chicken schmaltz
2 tsp. baking powder
1-2 tbsp. finely chopped fresh parsley
1/2 tsp. ground black pepper
1/4 tsp. nutmeg
Plenty of boiling salted water or Dryad saddle soup, reaching at least half-way up the Dutch oven.
For the mild Dryad Saddle stuffing:
1 cup sautéed defrosted Dryad Saddle mushroom pieces, or 2 – 3 cups fresh pieces of tender young ones, cut into strips.
1 tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
1 tbsp. unsalted butter
½ tsp. dry Italian Seasoning
1 tbsp. orange juice
1 large shallot or 1 small onion, finely diced
1 garlic clove, smashed and finely chopped
½ tsp. black pepper
1/6 tsp. freshly ground nutmeg
1/2 tsp. kosher salt (or to taste)
2 tbsp. chopped parsley leaves
For the robust Dryad Saddle stuffing:
2 cups finely chopped young Dryad Saddle pieces, or 2/4 cup frozen ones (when not using Dryad Saddle, I replace them with morels, black trumpets, shiitake, even young honey mushrooms.
1/2 cup finely chopped Vidalia onion or shallots.
1 tbsp. olive oil
1 tbsp. unsalted butter
1 garlic clove, crushed and finely chopped.
5 drops dark roasted sesame oil
10 drops Tabasco hot sauce
1/3 teaspoon prepared Dijon mustard
2 tbsp. orange juice (3 tbsp. if using freshly squeezed)
4 tbsp. white wine, like Pinot Grigio
1-3 tbsp. hot Dryad Saddle soup (as needed)
1/2 tsp. freshly ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon of Lipton powdered onion soup – only the powder from the bag but none of the pieces.
Salt – add only if needed at the end since the onion soup powder is salty
Instructions
To make the soup:
Bring the stock to a boil.
Place the mushroom pieces in a large bowl and pour the boiling stock over them. Weigh them down to keep in them in the stock and add more boiling stock or water if needed. The soaking liquid will be used in the soup so make sure to preserve it. Soak for 1-2 hours.
After the soaking time has passed, squeeze the extra liquid out of the mushroom slices back into the soaking bowl, place the slices in a separate bowl, and reserve the soaking liquid.
Heat the oil in the stock pot and add the mushroom slices. Stir constantly.
Sauté the mushroom slices while stirring until they get some color, about 1-2 minutes.
Add the onion, garlic cloves, bay leaves, Italian seasoning, thyme sprigs and red pepper flakes, and stir to mix.
Add the rest of the ingredients except for the powdered soup (or bullion cubes) and the garnish parsley and mix well.
Add the soaking liquids, avoiding the grit at the bottom of the soaking bowl, and add water to make sure the liquid covers the veggies by 3- 4 inches. Bring to a boil
Dissolve the bouillon or dry soup powder in a some water, add to the pot, and mix to incorporate. Return to the boil.
Lower to a gently bubbling simmer, partially cover the pot, and let simmer for 3 hours.
After 3 hours, stir well, taste the soup, and adjust flavors. The soup has a mild flavor, not strongly mushroomy. Do not over salt.
Let the soup cool completely in the pot and then pour it through a colander into another container to remove all the solids but the carrot pieces.
Refrigerate the soup. The flavor deepens after a few hours in the refrigerator.
For the soft matzo-meal dumplings (balls):
Yield: about 30 medium dumpling or 15-20 balls if stuffing them.
If you have made enough Dryad Saddle soup, it is best to cook the matzo-meal dumplings in it, but if you so choose keep in mind that the soup in which you will cook the dumplings will not remain as clear, due to the cooking of the dumplings. But the flavor of both will be bette I cook the dumplings in a separate pot of the Dryad Saddle soup, and serve them by removing 3 dumplings into a serving bowl and ladling over them clear hot soup from the other pot.
In a bowl, mix all the dry ingredients.
In a separate bowl, whisk the eggs with the chopped parsley.
Add the dry ingredients to the egg mixture and blend to incorporate.
Cover and refrigerate for 30 minutes.
Bring plenty of salty water or Dryad Saddle soup to a boil.
Remove the matzo meal mixture and with damp hands form from the mixture balls, about 1 – 1.5-inch in diameter. Do not over-roll the balls and carefully place each one in the boiling water/soup as you make each one. You may have to adjust the heat to ensure that the water/soup is bubbling nicely but not too rigorously.
Repeat until all the mixture is done.
Partially cover the simmering pot and let cook for 30-45 minutes, or until the center of the balls is fully cooked. Check after 30 minutes.
For the mild Dryad Saddle stuffing:
Heat the oil and butter in a pan and sauté the mushrooms until wilted.
Add the rest of the ingredients and sauté for 5 minutes.
Taste the mixture and correct favors. Set aside to cool completely.
For the robust Dryad Saddle stuffing:
Heat the oil and butter in a medium saucepan and add the olive oil, butter, chopped onion, nutmeg, Italian Seasoning, and black pepper. Stir.
Add the mushroom slices. Stir.
Sauté until the mushrooms get a bit of color and some edges brown.
Add the wine, orange juice, tabasco, mustard, and sesame oil. Lower the heat and let simmer for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add a tablespoon or so of the hot soup if needed.
Sprinkle the onion soup powder and mix to incorporate.
Add a tablespoonful or so of the soup as needed: the mixture should not be ‘runny’ because it is for stuffing, but it should not be too dry either.
Stir, and add the fresh ginger and parsley.
Taste and correct flavors.
Let cool completely before stuffing.
To stuff the dumplings:
Working one dumpling at a time, with damp hands, pinch a piece of matzo-meal mixture and form a 2-inch ball.
Press the ball into the palm of your hand to form a 4-inch disk about 1/3-inch thick.
Place 1 teaspoon of stuffing into the center of the disk, and gently fold the edges over it to cover. Roll in the palm of your hand to form a ball.
Place the stuffed dumpling into the boiling water/soup and repeat with the rest of the mixture.
Cook the dumplings as in the recipe for matzo-meal dumplings.
To serve this soup:
Place 3 hot stuffed matzo-meal dumplings in a bowl, add warm carrot slices, ladle clear hot soup over the dumplings, decorate with finely chopped parsley, and serve immediately.
Bété’avon! (Bon Appétit! in Hebrew)
