Summer is coming and so is the hot weather. No-one likes to cook in the heat of summer. A hot meal on a sunny day is nearly as detested. It might be that a cool, straightforward to prepare summer soup is just what you want.
Below are three recipes for soups that can be made in your Kenwood or blender. If you’ve got the ingredients available, none of them take more than 10 mins to make. They are all tasty, healthful, and really refreshing on a sunny day. While the recipes all suggest you use a food processor, you can get superb results by trying a blender or hand blender too.
These are all extremely simple recipes, so do not be shy to modify them and get a taste that your full family can enjoy.
Here are the recipes.
Summer Vegetarian soup
This is great tasting soup with a hint of Italy included. It is super easy to make and very healthy. It is especially good on a hot summer day
An avocado – skin and pit removed of course
4 Roma tomatoes – they might not be quite luscious enough ( see later )
Basil to sample ( Thai basil is truly good in this )
4 tablespoons of additional virgin olive oil
Process
How simple is this soup? Simply throw everything into your food processor and mix until it is smooth. If you find that it is more like a smoothie than soup, simply add more liquid ( or swap one of the Roma tomatoes for another more delicious variety ). Tip into bowls, garnish as you wish ( minced chives are nice ) and enjoy.
Sensational Salsa & Black Bean
This soup is a particularly simple soup that takes only a few minutes to prepare. It can be served cold, but always benefits from being heated.
roughly 4 servings
INGREDIENTS :
two normal sized cans of black beans ( any brand is OK, but try for low salt )
one 0.5 cups soup stock ( Just use chicken, beef, or vegetable bullion )
1 cup of your favourite salsa ( chunky makes a heartier soup )
1 teaspoon cumin ( best to use fresh ground in the soup and you can spatter seeds on top too )
0.25 cup of sour cream
1-2 green onions cut fine
Process :
Put the beans, salsa, cumin, and soup stock into a blender ( a blender is OK too ). Puree the mix till it is creamy in texture. Tip the mixture into a medium-sized pot and heat on low-medium till it is totally hot. This allows the flavours to combine. If you are going to serve it cold, move it to the refrigerator to cool down off till it’s time to eat. To eat it hot, simply serve into bowls and garnish with the onions and some of the sour cream.
MANGO SOUP
Mangos are simply divine. They are great as a fruit, whisked into drinks, added to salads. They also make a really good cool summer soup which is explained below.
Ingredients :
1 huge RIPE mango ( it will be soft, no soft, to touch )
two cups chicken soup stock ( make your own or use bullion if you’ve got to )
1 TBSP lemon grass ( available in most Asian markets, it looks like long greenish reeds when you buy it )
1 TBSP ginger – Freshly cut is best
Ground chili peppers to taste
one cup yogurt ( two percent plain is best )
2 TBSP cilantro ( chinese parsley ) chopped fine
Process :
Chop mango and put in blender. Mix briefly and then put in the ginger, lemon grass, chili and 0.5 cup of soup stock. Mix again till everything becomes really smooth. Move the soup into another bowl ( be sure it is large enough ) and mix in first the rest of the stock, and then the yogurt. This is best served cold, so put in fridge till you are ready for eating. Then put into bowls and serve with the cilantro as the garnish.
As the temperature starts to go up give these soups a try. They are all extremely simple and will add a new savoury and healthy dimension to your summer diet.
To get more recipes and cooking ideas, visit cooking101.org and while you are at it, you might also want to have a look at savory lamb stock.
