Wild Mushroom Bisque with Grilled Chicken

Every year on the Saturday preceding the Super Bowl, Wild Oats Market in Albuquerque sponsors the Chef’s Invitational Souper Bowl Soup Contest. In 1995, W.C. defeated a dozen of other Albuquerque chefs with this grand prize winner. Use whatever wild mushrooms you have to make 9 ounces—we have suggested a mixture, below. W.C. gathered most of the musrooms from the Sandia Mountains near Albuquerque and urges aficionados to learn about wild mushrooms.

Ingredients

• 1 3/4 pound chicken breasts, marinated in ½ cup teriyaki sauce and 1 ½ tablespoons grated ginger for 20 minutes

• 9 ounces mixed wild mushrooms (suggested: 2 ½ ounces, boletes, 2 ½ ounces cepes,
  2 ounces morels, 1 ounce golden trumpets, 1 ounce black trumpets)

• 2 large shallots, minced

• 1 teaspoon minced garlic

• 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

• 4 quarts homemade chicken stock

• ½ medium onion, chopped fine

• 3/4 cup butter, divided in thirds

• 1 pound domestic mushrooms, sliced

• 1 tablespoon minced garlic

• 3/4 cup all purpose flour

• 2 ounces hard romano cheese, finely grated

• 1 quart cream

• ½ cup dry sherry

• 2 cups V-8 juice

• Salt to taste

Instructions

Grill the chicken until done, chop fine, and set aside.

Soak the wild mushrooms in 3 cups warm water for 20 minutes. Rinse thoroughly and repeat in 2 cups water. Reserve the water. Remove the mushrooms from the water and chop fine. Place the mushrooms, reserved water, shallots, garlic, black pepper, and chicken stock in a stock pot and boil for 30 minutes, adding water to keep to the original volume.

Saute the onion in the 1/4 cup butter and set aside.

Saute the domestic mushrooms in 1/4 cup butter with the garlic. Add the sauteed onions, mushrooms, and garlic to the stock pot.

Melt the remaining 1/4 cup butter in a pan, add the flour, and make a roux until lightly browned. Add the roux to the pot, stirring well. Add the chopped chicken breast and romano cheese and stir well. Add the cream, sherry, V-8 juice, and salt and heat for 10 minutes.