White Bean Soup with Wild Mushrooms & Chive Mascarpone

Ingredients

• 1 Tbs. minced chives
• ½ lb. wild mushrooms, stems trimmed, caps thinly sliced (such as shiitake, oyster mushrooms, or chanterelles)
• ½ cup plus 2 Tbs. extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 small sprig rosemary (leaves only)
• 1 Tbs. fennel seeds
• 1 Tbs. unsalted butter
• Freshly ground black pepper
• + 9 more ingredients
• • 1 Tbs. chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
  • 1 chile d’árbol (or other small, hot dried chile), stemmed and crumbled
  • 1 cup chopped yellow onion
  • ½ cup chopped fennel
  • 1 Tbs. plus 1 tsp. fresh thyme leaves
  • Kosher salt
  • ½ cup mascarpone cheese
  • 1 Tbs. minced shallots
  • 2 cups dried cannellini beans, picked through and rinsed

Toast the fennel seeds in a small skillet over medium heat until they release their aroma and are golden brown, 2 to 3 minutes. Pound them coarsely in a mortar or grind them coarsely in a spice grinder. Heat a 6- to 8-qt. heavy-bottomed pot over high heat for 2 minutes. Pour in 1/2 cup olive oil...

View full recipe at Fine Cooking