Summer Soups

Parent Cafe
1

<p>My family loves a good soup but we tend to eat it less often in the summer.
There are however soups that have been “designed” so it seems specifically for this hot season. Do you have any favorite recipes? Please share…</p>

<p>I will start with the soup that I make whenever our local farmers market is in season. It is made from young beets that you buy with stems and leaves. </p>

<p>Start with a very good broth.
Use one bunch of fresh beets. I actually do not use the beets for this soup, only stems and leaves. Chopp it finely, put in a small pot and cover with a small amount of broth. Cook until tender, about 15 minutes. Return the entire mixture to the pot of broth.
Sour it with a juice of lemon (to taste, I like to use a large lemon).
Use sour cream to thicken the soup.
Salt and pepper to taste.
Add fresh chives, dill and parsley (all chopped) at the end of the cooking process.
This soup is best served with chopped hard boiled eggs. I also like to add a few potatoes, which I boil separately.</p>

2

<p>Our daughter LOVES Chicken Tortilla Soup, which uses fresh tomatoes. I make a lot of it during the summer and freeze the tomato base for even more batches.</p>

<p>In the food processer:
2 tomatoes, rough chop (ok, I usually stem and halve them, that’s it)
3 cloves garlic, pressed
1 onion, cut in half
1 chipolte chili, with a teaspoon or so of the adobo sauce
1 jalapeno pepper, stemed and seeded (use half if less heat prefered)
a few sprigs of cilantro</p>

<p>Process until smooth–it should look like tomato puree. Then either proceed with soup or put in a freezer bag for later.</p>

<p>For the Soup
Heat a little olive oil in the bottom of the soup pot or dutch oven, add the tomatoes, cook until they darken in color, about 10 minutes or so, stir periodically.</p>

<p>Add chicken broth, heat to simmer and cook about 15 minutes or so to blend flavors. Add 3 chicken precooked chicken breasts, shredded. (I’ve added notes below)
Serve with tortilla strips or chips, avocado strips, sour cream, lime, more cilantro.</p>

<p>Chicken:
I tend to cook the chicken breasts in batches when on sale, shred and freeze–I just poach them in some water with a little salt and pepper. Or pick up a rotissere chicken at the market, pull the chicken off and shred. </p>

<p>Tortilla Strips:
Cut a stack of tortilla into strips, spray with olive oil, bake in 350 oven about 8 minutes–watch closely (I tend to burn them).</p>

<p>This is based on a receipe from American’s Test Kitchen, I modified it a bit to allow for the tomato base to be made in batches in advance, same with the chicken. I like having meals in the freezer, ready to go asap.</p>

3

<p>S is currently on cold liquid diet :frowning:
zucchini soup:
1 medium onion, chopped.
3-4 zucchinis, chopped.
1 large can of chicken broth or homemade chicken broth.
salt and oregano to taste.
To thicken soup, add either: heavy cream, farina or cooked rice.</p>

<p>Saute onion until translucent;
Add zucchinis, toss a few times.
Add salt, oregano and chicken broth.
Cook until done (about 20 mns)
Add heavy cream, farina or cooked rice.
Pour into blender and mix.</p>

4

<p>marite, that’s perfect timing–the zucchinis are coming in! thanks.</p>

<p>(sorry to hear about son and diet, hope it’s temporary).</p>

5

<p>Garland: It’s wisdom teeth. The oral surgeon very kindly called last evening to check on S. But it’s liquid diet at least through the weekend.</p>

<p>The soup can also be thickened with yogurt or sour cream. It’s very versatile. And there’s always vichyssoise.</p>

6

<p>I do like to make corn chowder when the sweet corn comes in. I’ve seen some interesting variations recently–like lobster corn chowder.</p>

<p>I use Martha Stewart’s corn chowder recipe on Marthastewart.com, and I also use a Barefoot Contessa recipe that’s on foodnetwork.com. There are also some marvelous summer minestrone recipes out there.</p>

<p>In the cooler months we have soup probably three times a week for dinner, but we don’t eat much of it in the summer.</p>

7

<p>A favorite of S1:
gazpacho:</p>

<p>1 clove garlic, minced
1 small onion, chopped fine
1 pint tomato juice
1 cucumber
2 tbsps lemon juice
2 tomatoes, chopped
1 tsp salt
pinch pepper
2 tbsp olive oil.
toasted bread cubes (optional)</p>

<p>Chop 2/3 of the cucumber, reserve the other third together with the chopped tomatoes.
Put all the ingredients into a blender except for the reserved cucumber and tomatoes. refrigerate. Add chopped cucumber and tomatoes and toasted bread cubes before serving.</p>

8

<p>Thanks, again, Marite! I have a lot of winter soups, but my summer soup repetoire is lacking.</p>

9

<p>I like this recipe but I use more tomatoes, less tomato juice and eliminate the green pepper:</p>

<p>Cold Tomato Avocado Soup</p>

<p>1 ripe tomato, peeled and quartered
2 large avocados - peeled, pitted, and sliced
1 small onion, quartered
1 green bell pepper, chopped
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
1 quart tomato juice
1 1/4 cups plain nonfat yogurt
salt to taste
1/4 cup chopped fresh chives
cayenne pepper to taste </p>

<p>DIRECTIONS
Place tomato, avocados, onion, green bell pepper, and lemon juice into the bowl of a food processor, and process until smooth. Pour in 1 cup tomato juice, and process to blend.
Transfer mixture to a large bowl, and mix in remaining tomato juice and 1 cup yogurt. Season to taste with salt. Chill for 2 hours.
Serve in bowls garnished with dollops of yogurt, chives, and a sprinkling of cayenne pepper.</p>

<p>Also good, we like minus the cheese:</p>

<p>Watermelon Soup</p>

<p>6 pounds yellow or red seedless watermelon, diced (9 cups)
2 tablespoons chopped fresh mint
1 tablespoon sugar
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1 cup lightly sweet white wine (such as Riesling) or 3/4 cup water mixed with 1/4 cup sugar
1 teaspoon chopped ginger
8 teaspoons crumbled feta
1/4 cup sparkling wine (or sparkling water) </p>

<p>Combine 1 cup of the watermelon with mint and sugar in a bowl. Set aside. Blend remaining 8 cups watermelon, lemon juice, wine, and ginger in a blender until smooth. Let sit 1/2 hour. Strain soup; divide among 8 bowls. Top each with 1/8 cup reserved watermelon and 1 teaspoon feta.</p>

10

<p>These two soups sound great. I’ll give them a try this weekend after we go grocery shopping. Thanks on behalf of S, especially!</p>

11

<p>Does anyone have a good recipe for Tarator (Bulgarian cucumber/yogurt soup)?</p>

12

<p>Marite - I visited Seville in 1992 during the Expo and had my first gazpacho there. Your recipe brought sweet (and hot) memories.</p>

<p>For the tarator you will need at least 2 cucumbers and a container of yogurt. I like garlic as well. Some people like chopped cucumbers, I proces mine along with garlic in a blender, mix with yogurt, add some water to make it more liquidy . Season to taste with salt and refrigerate for a few hours. Add dill just before serving.
This soup has to be really cold !</p>

<p>My 12 year old has been looking at the screen and she demands now that I make watermelon soup tomorrow. Nice change after roasting the turkey today ;)</p>

13

<p>I like cold Senegalese soup. The recipe was in the New York Times sometime in the early 80s.</p>

<p>2 Tb butter
1/2 cup chopped onion
1 Tb curry powder
1 cup chopped leek
1 clove minced garlic
1/2 cup banana
1 1/2 cup appple diced (3 small ones)
1 cup tomatoes peeled (I never peel them)
1 cup potatoes peeled and cubed
salt and pepper to taste
4 drops of hot sauce
3 1/2 cups chicken broth
1 cup heavy cream
1/2 cup diced chicken</p>

<ol>
<li><p>in a heavy casserole cook onion in butter about one minute, then add curry powder and cook a few seconds more.</p></li>
<li><p>Add fruits and vegetables, salt, pepper and tabasco stir.</p></li>
<li><p>Add chicken broth and simmer 20 minutes</p></li>
<li><p>Whiz in food processor or blender till smoothe.</p></li>
<li><p>Chill thoroughly. (about 3 hours) Add cream and serve in bowls topped with a little diced chicken.</p></li>
</ol>

<p>Serves 8 to 10.</p>

14

<p>Kelowna:</p>

<p>I was introduced to gazpacho while in college. People who have been in Cambridge, MA may remember the restaurant: Pamplona. The gazpacho was very very garlicky, more than my Ss like it, so this recipe has far less garlic in it. Not surprising since the recipe comes from a British cookbook (not surprising since one my American friends living in England said that in the early 70s, she could not get garlic in Lancaster. The store only had salt and pepper!) I’ve eaten gazpacho with diced green pepper, with basil, and other ingredients, but this is the recipe my family likes best. </p>

<p>I’m going to try the tarator this weekend. It sounds like something my S should be slurping until he can eat solid food again. Right now, there are several large containers of yogurt in the fridge, but they are all of the fruity kind.</p>

15

<p>Kelowna and Marite, thank you! I can’t imagine eating anything hot for the next several days. The tarator recipe will come handy tomorrow since I just brought a bowl of cucumbers from my garden.</p>

16

<p>Here is one that is soooo easy, but everyone seems to love:</p>

<p>Melon Soup</p>

<p>1 ripe cantaloupe
1 cup fresh orange juice
2 tsp fresh lime juice
1 cup plain low fat yogurt
fresh mint for garnish</p>

<p>Quarter melon, remove and discard seeds
Cut fruit and put in blender
Add oj and lime juice</p>

<p>Put yogurt into medium bowl and whisk until light and smooth. Add blended fruit and whisk. Refrigerate and chill. Whisk lightly before serving, add garnish and serve.</p>

17

<p>I just made some tarator. Very nice and refreshing! I’m sure to make more this summer.</p>

18

<p>I don’t think I’ve ever bumped before but I’d love some more soup recipes.</p>

19

<p>Bummer. H refused to eat my tarator. His lunch was a can of sardines. Yuck.</p>