Hot Summer--Cool Soups

I just got finished making some gazpacho. It was the only thing that sounded good to me after so many hot and humid days. Since there are more to come, I was wondering if anybody else out there had any ideas for a chilled soup? Something that would go well with hearty bread slathered in butter. Mmmmmm....

Meowzart,

for a variation on your theme, take that gazpacho add a little old bay & toss in a liberal amount of jumbo lump

I haven't made it yet myself, but I often see recipes for chilled avocado soups and they always sound good. You put about 3 avocadoes into a blender with 3-4 cups chicken broth. Some people add cream or sour cream. You add guacamole-type ingredients to your liking...onions, chiles, cilantro, etc.

Chilled strawberry soup was served several times over the summer when I was a kid. It was creamy and refreshing.

Puree 3 pints of strawberries, and add 1 cup sour cream and 1/2 a cup of half & half and 2 cans (24 ounces) of peach soda (not diet). Blend. Chill for several hours. Garnish with strawberry slices if desired.

Optional: fresh mint leaves as a garnish
Very optional: freshly ground black pepper (I love pepper on strawberries, but you may not)

I've always been partial to a cold soup made with excess zucchini:

Saute / sweat an onion and some garlic in a splash of olive oil until tender but not brown. Add in a couple of zukes, thinly sliced, and sweat until tender. Season with copious amounts of oregano. Puree solids with a food mill, stir in cooking liquid that may remain, and correct texture with some creme fraiche or sour cream and chicken broth. Garnish with fresh oregano and maybe a few croutons.

Eric

You'll get nothing but compliments when you serve this soup:

Chilled Blueberry Soup

1 pint fresh blueberries
2 cups water
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1 lemon thinly sliced
2 cups sour cream
1/2 cup dry red wine

Wash and drain blueberries. In medium saucepan, combine berries with water, sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg and lemon slices. Bring to boil and simmer, uncovered, for 5 minutes. Strain mixture through sieve and discard pulp. Chill thoroughly for at leat 4 hours.

When ready to serve, whisk in sour cream and wine. Serve in chilled bowls.

Serves 4.

Here's another refreshing chilled soup for a hot day's luncheon, or to start a dinner:

Chilled Cantaloupe Soup

1 cantaloupe - peeled, seeded, cubed
2 cups orange juice
1 tablespoon fresh lime juice
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Puree cantaloupe in food processor with one cup of orange juice. Add remaining cup of orange juice, lime juice and cinnamon and mix in processor until well blended. Chill before serving. Garnish with mint leaves, if desired.

Serves 6

Honeydew and Mint Soup in Cantaloupe

1\2 honeydew, cut into one inch chunks
1 cup fresh mint leaves
3 tbs lime juice
1 or 2 tbs sugar
3 cantaloupes, 1/2 and cleaned

Blend first four ingredients in batches until smooth. Chill oVernight

Serve in cantaloupe halves with mint garnish

This is really good. Also it looks nice on the table. Kind of a dessert course, or maybe instead of a salad.

It's a short hop from melons to mangoes.....There are a bunch of good chilled mango soup recipes out there--some sweet, some savory. I don't think you can really go wrong--my brother and I made a chilled mango soup once for our folks' anniversary, and all I remember doing was pureeing a whole bunch of mango, adding chicken stock, some pepper, lemon juice, and sticking the result in the fridge for a few hours. Cleaning up seemed to take longer than the prep time--but, then, my brother was 10, and I think we forgot to put the lid on the blender, at one point.

I have nver done a cool soup, but I can imagine what you would do to a cucumber, which is cool and combining it with a cantelope which is smooth, add a little salt, cinnamon and cheese????

Paul E. Smith
Knoxville, TN

I've never been a fan of cold soups however I thought someone might appreciate the recipes and may want to add some new ones.

Strawberries mashed with a fork, mixed with a little sugar and creme fraiche. (From French Women Don't Get Fat)