Carmelized Onion, Morel, and Wild Rice Soup

A few weeks ago I made my first batch of broth.  I know, I know.  That's just inexcusable.  Who makes their own tofu, granola, miso, seitan, canned soups, and root beer but DOESN'T make their own broth?  That's just silly.

But since this broth was such a long time coming, I wanted to use it in a really special soup.  

I've also been saving up some dried morel mushrooms that my friend Sarah gave to me. She picked them up at the farmer's market in Redwing, MN.  The combination of vegetable broth and rich morel mushrooms just screams for carmelized onions!  And the wild rice makes this soup into something that'll fill you up for more than 15 minutes.

Carmelized Onion, Morel, and Wild Rice Soup

2 Tbsp. olive oil

6 medium onions, sliced thinly

1/2 cup dried morel mushrooms (or porcinis would be nice)

2 cups boiling water

1/4 cup uncooked wild rice

4 Tbsp. tamari

1/2 cup red wine

3 cups broth

Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Heat a large, wide pan over medium heat.  Add the olive oil and the sliced onions.  Reduce heat to low and slowly cook, about 40 minutes or until onions are sweet, carmelized, and limp.

Meanwhile, boil 2 cups of water.  Pour 1 cup of the boiling water over the dried mushrooms in a little bowl.  Add the wild rice to the remaining boiling water and simmer, covered, for about 40 minutes or until rice is tender.

When the rice and onions are both done, add the wild rice to the onion pan.  Then add the tamari, red wine, and broth to deglaze the pan.  Drain the mushrooms, reserving the liquid.  Chop the mushrooms and add them to the soup.  Slowly pour the mushroom soaking liquid into the soup, letting any solids or grit remain behind.

Simmer for a few minutes to allow flavors to meld.  Then taste and adjust salt.  Add plenty of fresh ground black pepper and serve with crusty French bread!