A few months ago I shared with you the Green Soup recipe. Now that winter is back again, here comes the time for another soup recipe: the Fancy Soup.

Why is it so fancy? First of all, it is served in lion’s head bowls under a dome of puff pastry. But the fancy doesn’t stop here! It is also inspired by Paul Bocuse‘s signature dish: the black truffle VGE soup (served at the Elysée in 1975).  It was served to Valéry Giscard d’Estaing (VGE) who was then the French President. Nowadays, it is still very famous thanks of Paul Bocuse humour and wit. While he was presenting the soup to the President he said: “Monsieur le Président, on va casser la croûte”. An approximative traduction would be “Mr. President, let’s break bread”.

The original recipe contains black truffles and foie gras. Both ingredients are difficult to find in the States and if by any chance you find them, prices are up to the sky! So my suggestion to you is way less fancy as it contains Christmas turkey leftovers! But believe me, it is still delicious. You’ll tell me!

Ingredients for 4 fancy soup bowls

• 1 carrot
• 6 cello mushrooms
• 1 branch of celery
• 2 tbsp of butter
• 1 liter of chicken broth
• 4 tsp of dry vermouth (ideally Noilly Prat)
• 12 tbsp of turkey leftovers cut in small pieces (1/2 inch) or a raw chicken breast
• 1 sheet of puff pastry
• 1 yolk
• salt and pepper
• Optional: 2 tsp of truffle oil

Directions to cook a fancy soup

1. Chop the carrot, mushrooms and celery in small dices of half an inch. Melt the butter in a skillet and add these vegetables. Add salt and pepper and cook on medium heat for 7 to 10 minutes mixing regularly.
2. Preheat the oven to 425°F (220°C).
3. If you used a raw chicken breast, poached it in the boiling broth for 7 minutes. Then cut it in small dices of about half an inch. If you’re using turkey leftovers, just bring the broth to a boil.
4. Gently place the soup bowl upside down on your puff pastry. Cut circles half an inch wider than the bowl itself.
5. Then, pour a tsp of dry vermouth in each one of the soup bowl. Distribute evenly the vegetables of your skillet at the bottom. Add 3 tbsp of diced poultry and fill with broth up to half an inch from the edge. Optional, add half a tsp of truffle oil in each bowl.
6. Cover each soup bowl with a puff pastry circle, pressing gently on the edge to make the dough stick. In a mixing bowl, mix the egg yolk with a tbsp of water. Use a pastry brush to cover the puff pastry with this mixture. Place the bowls in the oven for 20 minutes and serve! The pastry crust allows to keep all the aromas inside. Once you’re ready to eat, you can either dive your tablespoon through the crust, or gently lift it with the tip of a knife and set it aside in a small plate. Be careful it is very hot!

Note on where to find the lion’s head bowls: the original ones are very expensive. You can purchase them on Amazon at $30 the set of two. We purchased ours (14 oz.) on sale at Sur la Table for a very decent price. We are planning to reuse them to cook the famous Onion Soup! Would you like to see the recipe?