In a small bowl soak mushrooms in hot water for 20 minutes. Drain, reserving liquid.
Strain liquid through a cheesecloth and chop mushrooms. In a large sauce pan sauté
onion and leek in butter until both are soft. Add carrot, barley, reserved mushroom
liquid, chicken broth, salt and pepper. Simmer mixture covered, for hour. Add potatoes,
bay leaves and chopped mushrooms and cook another 20 minutes covered. Discard
bay leaves. place sour cream into a bowl. Stir a little soup into sour cream then pour
sour cream mixture into soup. Heat but do not boil. Garnish soup with a little chopped
dill. If desired, thicken soup with 1 to 2 T of flour with a equal amount of water and
stirring into soup. Simmer until soup is thickened about 5 minutes.
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