Instructions: This soup is tangy in its mildest rendition, and just gets hotter, depending on the strength of the curry used. For added tastebud tingling, dust with cayenne pepper.

Today one can find a variety of marvelous wild mushrooms, even in the supermarket. Use what is available. For the dried mushrooms, I like the mix of oyster, morel, and porcini, but a cup of any single variety can be substituted. Garnish with chopped parsley if you cant find chervil.

Pour the boiling water over the dried mushrooms in a bowl and set aside to soak.

Preheat a heavy stockpot over medium heat for about 1 minute, then spray it twice with the vegetable oil. Add the leeks and saute for about 3 minutes, stirring constantly, until translucent. Add the flour and curry powder. Stir with a wooden spoon until the leeks are well coated. Add the milk and bouillon cube. Raise the heat to high and cook just until bubbles begin to form around the edge.

Reduce the heat to low and whisk until all ingredients are thoroughly combined. Stir in the fresh mushrooms and cook for 5 minutes.

Meanwhile, remove the reconstituted mushrooms from their soaking liquid, strain, squeeze out excess moisture, and roughly chop. (Save the soaking liquid for another soup or sauce; here it would thin the soup too much and curdle the skim milk.) Add to the stockpot and cook for 1 minute more. Stir in the sherry.

Garnish with the chopped chervil.

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