Slovak Sauerkraut Mushroom Soup

As the name of the recipe indicates, this savory soup comes to us from Czechoslovakia. Our local health food store fortunately carries dried porcini mushrooms. This is an essential ingredient for the depth of flavor of this soup, altho the recipe calls for your everyday mushrooms from the grocery store, too. 

I came to love mushroom soup in a somewhat unusual way. As a preteen, I was invited to sit for an oil painting at an artist's home, and we would take a break from the painting and she would feed me mushroom soup. I remember thinking it an odd food, mostly because my mom never served it at home. But it became rather a special food for me, to share with this artist.

The porcini mushrooms must be hydrated and then they simmer for what seems like forever (2 hours).  It makes the kitchen smell delectable. I brought my work to the kitchen island just so I could enjoy the simmering wonderfulness of mushrooms.

It will improve in flavor over time (keeps up to a week in fridge). But it tasted so good that, umm, nope, no leftovers! I paired the soup with crusty buttered garlic bread. Not a recipe I will make often, as porcini mushrooms are twice as expensive as lobster, if you do the math per ounce of meat. So I savored every mouthful and will look forward to this meal again, for a special occasion.