Summer Cooking 101 Part III, Soup

This was another scorcher of a weekend. Yesterday would have been much nicer had the weather been more cooperative. It's not easy to have a celebration when the last thing you want to do is cook. My mother-in-law stopped by to drop off a gift for my husband and called back home to her other son to tell him to "please turn off the oven". I looked at my husband and said "Hear that? That's the sound of someone with central a/c." We both took that in for a second and turned the fan up to high.

With the heat still on my mind (it should be cooler today) I thought I'd pop out these recipes for cold soups. If you haven't ever tried one I recommend starting out with one of the fruit-based soups that really taste more like a dessert before you move onto something like gazpacho.


Strawberry Soup

1 to 1 1/2 qts fresh strawberries cleaned and hulled
1 clove
1/2 cinnamon stick
1/4 c brandy or triple sec (you can replace this with water)
1 c sugar
cornstarch
2 c heavy cream 1/2 liquid and 1/2 whipped

Combine strawberries, clove, cinnamon and liquor or water in a heay saucepan. Bring to a boil and reduce to a simmer. Simmer for 10 minutes. Thicken if needed with cornstarch. Cool.

Once the strawberry mixture is cooled, remove the clove and cinnamon stick. Mash well or puree, if desired, some like this soup chunky and others prefer it smooth. Add the liquid cream and then fold in the whipped cream. Chill for several hours before serving.


Cold Melon Soup

2 ripe cantaloupes peeled, seeded and diced about 4 cups
1 small can (6-8 oz) apricot nectar
1/4 c honey
1 sachet (cheesecloth tied with string) containing 1/2 cinnamon stick and 3 slivers ginger) OR 1 tsp pumpkin pie or apple pie spice
2 c heavy cream -1/2 liquid and 1/2 whipped

In a large saucepan combine melon, apricot nectar, honey and spices. Bring to a boil and reduce to a simmer. Simmer for 10 minutes or until melon is very soft. Cool completely and puree (remove sachet first).

Add liquid cream and then fold in whipped cream. Chill for several hours before serving.


Iced Cucumber Soup

5 cucumbers-peeled, seeded and cut into 1" chunks
5 fresh mint leaves
2 c buttermilk
2 c chicken stock
1 T lime juice
1/2 t salt

Place cucumbers and mint leaves in blender or food
processor and whirl to a fine puree. Pour into a 2 qt
pitcher. Add buttermilk, chicken stock, lime juice, and
salt; mix well. Chill for at least 1 hour or until cold.


Another version of cucumber soup:

Chilled Dill Cucumber Soup

1 cup cold chicken or vegetable broth
3/4 lb. fresh cucumbers, not peeled, cut into chunks
3 sprigs fresh dill, chopped
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Put some of the broth into a blender, just enough to cover the blades.
Add cucumber and dill and blend until liquid. Add remaining broth, salt and pepper
and blend.
Serve sprinkled with additional chopped dill.


This next soup is what Alice B. Toklas referred to as "Beautiful Soup".

Gazpacho

2 large very ripe tomatoes concassè (peeled, seeded and diced)
1/2 onion diced
1/2 large green pepper diced
1/2 large red pepper diced
1/2 large yellow pepper diced
1 cucumber peeled, seeded and diced
1 clove garlic minced
2 T red wine vinegar
1 T lemon juice
1 T lime juice
2 c tomato juice
2 c consomme or beef stock (cold)

Puree all together until smooth. Add garnish (below) and chill for several hours. Serve topped with fried croutons if desired.

Garnish

1 c tomato concassè (peeled, seeded, diced)
2 c peppers (green, red, yellow) diced
1 c peeled and seeded cucumber diced
1 c scallions sliced thin
1 T fresh dill minced
1 T fresh cilantro minced