Keep Your Cool

Easy-to-make cold soups are tasty

for ladies and "real men," too.

ANNABEL COHEN

Special to the Jewish News

A

s the slogan goes, soup is
good food. But with the
weather so hot, the thought
of hot soup leaves us cold.
The obvious solution then is cold soup.
The classic cold soups most
Americans think of are gazpacho,
cucumber, potato and melon, though
every ethnic group has its own recipes.
Some may think of cold soup as "chick
soup," best served exclusively at ladies'
luncheons or chi-chi restaurants. But
the reality is that real men do eat cold,
and yes, even fruity, soups. It may take
a little mind expansion to appreciate
the idea, but on a sultry summer day, it
does make perfect sense. The trick is to
forget how you define soup — at least
for the next month or so.
The following recipes take a few
twists to some traditional favorites. The
gazpacho includes grilled ingredients, a
switch from the salad in a glass variety.
The potato soup is actually a short-cut
version of Vichyssoise, the famous
French kind. Cucumbers get a dose of
non-fat yogurt for this even lighter ver-
sion of cucumber soup. And the melon
soup gets a facelift with a melon
liqueur, Midori. A light, original veg-
etable soup, served with grilled French
bread toasts, is bound to be a welcome
addition to your summer soup reper-
toire. It's so good, you may want to
make this soup all year round.
As we enter the home stretch of sum-
mer and start gearing for an early
Jewish holiday season, keep your cool
with these easy to make, easier to eat
soups. They're a smart and refreshing
start to a meal.
Still can't swallow the idea of soups
that aren't piping hot? Try these and
judge, or clip a couple of these recipes
and wait for cooler weather. The gazpa-

cho, potato and vegetable soups (with a
few modifications) are marvelous served
hot, too.

CHILLED CUCUMBER WITH
DILL, CHIVES AND MINT SOUP
6 cups peeled cucumber chunks, any
variety
1/2 cup chopped onions
1/4 t. chopped garlic
1 cup low-fat or nonfat plain yogurt
1/2 cup low-fat or nonfat sour cream
3 T. fresh chopped dill
1/4 cup chopped fresh mint leaves
Salt and white pepper to taste
1/4 cup fresh minced chives, garnish
In the pitcher of a blender or bowl of
a food processor, combine cucumber,
onion, garlic, yogurt and sour cream.
Process the mixture until smooth. Add
dill, mint, salt and white pepper to
taste and process for a few seconds
more to incorporate the herbs. Transfer
the soup to a pitcher, cover with plastic
wrap and chill for several hours or
overnight.
To serve, stir the soup, adjust season-
ings and serve in bowls, mugs or wine
goblets, sprinkled with chives.
Makes 8 servings.

CHILLED POTATO AND LEEK
SOUP
3 cups chopped, peeled Idaho or rus-
set potatoes
1/2 cup chopped celery
2 cups sliced leeks, white part only
3 cups vegetable broth
2 cups water
Kosher salt to taste
White pepper to taste
1/8 t. ground nutmeg
2 cups half-and-half
1/2 cup chopped chives, garnish
In a saucepan set at medium-high,
combine potatoes, celery and leeks with
broth and water. Bring the liquid to a

boil. Reduce heat
and gently cook
until the potatoes
are very tender.
Remove from
heat and cool slight-
ly. Transfer the mix-
ture to the pitcher
of a blender or food
processor and blend
or process until
smooth. Transfer
the mixture to a
large bowl or pitch-
er. Stir in the salt,
pepper, nutmeg and
half-and-half.
Cover with plastic wrap and chill the
soup for several hours or overnight
until ready to serve. Adjust seasonings
to taste and serve in bowls, mugs or
wine goblets, garnished with chives.
Makes 8 servings.

CHILLED HONEYDEW AND
MIDORI SOUP
Midori is a Japanese liqueur with a
honeydew flavor.
1 honeydew melon, peeled, seeded
and cut into large chunks (about 8
cups)
3/4 cup fresh mint leaves, loosely
packed
1 cup vanilla yogurt
3 T. Midori, or to taste
1/4 cup fresh lime juice
1/2 t. salt
Combine all ingredients in the pitch-
er of a blender or bowl of a food
processor. Puree until smooth (you may
have to make this in batches).
Pour the soup into a large pitcher or
bowl. Cover with plastic wrap and chill
the soup for several hours or overnight
until ready to serve. Adjust seasonings
to taste and serve in bowls, mugs or
wine goblets, garnished with chives.
Makes 8 servings.

GRILLED GAZPACHO WITH
AVOCADO AND GRILLED
TOASTS
1/2 cup olive oil
2 pounds fresh tomatoes, cut into
thick slices
2 red bell peppers, cut in half
lengthwise and seeded
2 large onions, sliced thickly, hori-
zontally (don't separate the rings)
•
2 cups chopped cucumber
1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro
1 T. dried parsley flakes
1 cup water (or more)
Hot pepper sauce, such as Tabasco,
to taste
Juice of 2 lemons or limes, plus
more to taste
Kosher salt and pepper to taste
1-2 avocados, any type, diced
1 cup sour cream, garnish
16 slices French bread, sliced and
brushed with olive oil, grilled
Heat grill to medium-high. Arrange
tomato slices on a cookie sheet or
baking dish brushed with olive oil.
Place the cookie sheet on the grill
and cook tomatoes for about 10 min-
utes until softened. Arrange the bell

FOOD

on page 95

t4 N

7/26
2002

93