A light soup is a welcome meal even in the warmer weather. I’m not talking about heavy stews with tons of ingredients, served thick enough to keep upright the proverbial spoon, but something much thinner, gentler on the pallet. Something suiting a lazy afternoon in the sunshine. There are probably a whole host of soups that would rise to the occasion, but I have settled upon a very simple mushroom one. It is both light and creamy, with a subtle flavour that doesn’t leave an aftertaste, making it not only ideal as a light lunch, but also as a starter to something more robust.
If you enjoy the recipes here, please show your support for this blog by clicking on the ads to help keep the free content coming!
I’ve used gram flour as a thickener in order to keep the recipe gluten free, which also serves to add a tiny amount of colour to the dish. If you have no gluten issues use whatever flour you have at hand. I have also chosen the most basic closed-cup mushrooms that you get in packs at the supermarket for this recipe. If you have a taste for something more exotic, then by all means experiment. Remember that different mushroom will affect the colour and flavour of the final soup. Flat or field mushrooms that are much darker in colour will show up as such in your finished dish. Oyster or shitake might be an exciting alternative. Just remember to cut your mushrooms up small, so that you or your guests are not chewing on big chunks.
Prep time: 10 minutes. Cooking time: 15-20 minutes.
Serves 2-3
Ingredients:
- 40g vegan butter
3 cloves garlic, finely chopped or crushed
250g closed cup mushrooms, finely diced
2 tbsp gram (chickpea) flour. You can put in a little more if you prefer a thicker soup.
2 tbsp nutritional yeast
1 litre hot vegetable stock, using two stock cubes (make sure they’re gluten free)
150ml vegan cream
Salt and pepper to taste

ORDER YOUR COPY OF MY COOKBOOK
GOING VEGAN FROM AMAZON
AVAILABLE IN BOTH PAPERBACK AND KINDLE FORMAT
Method:
First melt the butter in a medium-sized saucepan. Add the garlic and fry for 2 minutes, then put in the mushrooms and fry, stirring often, for a further 5-7 minutes, until they are soft and coloured, but not burnt.
Add the flour and nutritional yeast and mix well, then add the vegetable stock, a little at a time, stirring constantly with a whisk to prevent lumps from forming. Once you have used all the stock, bring it to the boil and simmer gently for about 10 minutes, stirring from time to time.
After 10 minutes, turn down the heat and stir in the cream. Heat the soup back through to just about boiling point, but do not boil as the cream will split.
Season with salt and pepper to taste and serve immediately with your favourite crusty bread.


ORDER YOUR COPY OF MY LATEST COOKBOOK
VEGGING OUT FROM AMAZON
AVAILABLE IN BOTH PAPERBACK AND KINDLE FORMAT
Rhubarb and Blueberry Jam
This is a great recipe if you have some leftover rhubarb in your garden, in addition to some fresh blueberries, available now in most supermarkets if you don’t grow them. It’s the kind of thing you can throw together late one evening, as it only requires the occasional stir. You can then leave it to…
Caramelised Red Onion Dip
This is the perfect time of year to be experimenting with cold and light food. Easy items that you can store in the fridge and eat over a few days as the mood takes you. Dips are great for outdoor eating. You can put a selection of homemade dips on the table on any occasion,…
Roasted Asparagus, Basil and Walnut Pesto Served with Baby Potatoes and Broad Beans
You can get asparagus imported all year round in most supermarkets, but British asparagus has its growth season between May and July, with early appearance often at the end of April. Now is the perfect time to make use to these green spears in your everyday cooking. My choice for this recipe was to roast…
Asparagus, Mushroom and Leek Pastries
April 23rd marks the start of asparagus season and we are now starting to see British asparagus appear on the shelves. Young asparagus is a thin and tender vegetable that is perfect for cooking a variety of dishes. It cooks quickly, so you must keep an eye on it. The more mature plant is thicker…
Vegan Meatballs in Tomato Sauce
What is it about a plate of plump vegan meatballs in a rich tomato sauce, nestled comfortably on a soft pillow of spaghetti that is so satisfying even before a single mouthful is taken? It is a dish where even the sight and smell of it has its own umami. It creates thrilling anticipation from…
Vegan Enchiladas
To veganise something like Enchiladas now is incredibly easy with the variety of ingredients available in most supermarkets. For this one I have used fresh vegan mince, along with mushrooms and onions for the chilli base. Don’t worry if you don’t like eating vegan mince, you can always substitute this chilli for my Sweet Potato,…
Spanish Lentils with Vegan Chorizo and Black Pudding
I first tried this dish about 25 years ago, when my Spanish girlfriend made it for me in a bedsit we shared in North London back in the mid-nineties. It was cooked on one of those old Baby Belling stoves that you would often see in bedsits back in those days (they might still have…
Vegan Fudge Cookies
We’ve been enjoying packets of vegan fudge in our house for quite a while now and a recent conversation with my wife got me thinking about how great it would be to have the fudge in a cookie, just like it was chocolate chip. This recipe is the product of that discussion: a very simple…