Delicious Summer Soups!

chilled carrot soup with dill crema

Ingredients

• 1 tbsp coconut oil (or olive oil)
• 1 small onion, diced
• 2 lbs carrots, peeled and chopped
• 4 cups low sodium vegetable stock
• 1 tsp turmeric
• Garlic salt and pepper to taste
• Generous handful of dill, chopped

dill crema

• 1 cup cashews, soaked
• Juice of 1 lemon
• Generous handle of dill (about ½ cup), chopped
• 2 garlic cloves
• ½ cup water

Method: 

1.  Soak cashews for a few hours or overnight.  Drain and then blend with the ingredients for the dill crema (preferably in a high speed blender).  Add water until you achieve desired consistency. Store in the fridge until ready to use.

2.  Heat a large soup pot over medium heat.  Add coconut oil.  Add the onion and saute until soft, about 10 minutes.

2. Add turmeric and saute for a minute.  Add carrots and mix well.

3. Add stock and simmer for 20 – 30 minutes until carrots are soft. Season with garlic salt and pepper to taste. 

4. Turn off heat and let cool slightly.  Using an immersion blender, puree soup.  Let cool completely and stir in chopped dill.  Serve with a generous dollop of dill crema.

5. Enjoy!

• PREP TIME
  25 mins
• COOK TIME
  0 mins.

• 2 large slicing cucumbers, finely chopped
• 1 1/2 cups plain greek yogurt
• 3 1/2 TBS fresh lemon juice
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 1/4 cup dill, stems removed and diced
• 1/4 cup parsley, thick stems removed and diced
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• pinch of crushed red pepper flakes
• salt and pepper to taste
• a small handful of ice cubes

Serves 2-4

1. In a blender combine cucumber, yogurt, lemon juice, garlic, dill, parsley, ice cubes and olive oil. Blend until smooth.
2. Keep soup chilled until ready to serve. If you use ice cubes it should be ready to eat right away.
3. Season to taste with salt, pepper, and crushed red pepper flakes.

Use this recipe as a guide. Always taste test as you go. Adjust measurements and ingredients as necessary.

WATERMELON & AVOCADO GAZPACHO 

RECIPE

Prep time: 20 minutes (plus 1 hour to chill) Serves 4. If your watermelon isn’t as sweet as you’d like, you can add a little sugar.

• 1/2 garlic clove
• 1/2 a shallot
• 2 cups worth cut seedless watermelon
• 1 1/2 cups worth cut tomatoes
• 1-2 peeled kirby cucumbers
• Small piece of jalapeño pepper
• 1 avocado
• Juice from 2 lemons
• Handful of box basil or a few leaves of regular basil
• 3 tablespoons olive oil

• 3/4 teaspoon salt (or to taste)
• Cracked black pepper to taste
• Splash of water

DIRECTIONS

1. Place everything but the avocado in the food processor or blender (you might have to do this in a couple batches if it doesn’t all fit at once) and whiz until desired consistency. Now add 1/2 – 3/4 of the avocado and whiz until incorporated and gazpacho turns a lighter shade of pink.
2. Let sit in fridge for an hour to chill and so flavors can set. Serve cold with sliced avocado on top!

Cold Avocado SoupServes 4 as a starter or 2 as a lunch/dinner

You can prepare this a day ahead and keep in a closed container in the fridge.  Also, try replacing the coconut milk with yogurt.

2 avocados, peeled and pitted
3 inches (7 cm) cucumber, peeled and cut into smaller pieces
1 cup cold water
1/2 cup coconut milk
4 tbsp lemon juice
4-8 drops tabasco
a handful chives, chopped
3 stems dill
2 ice cubes
1 tsp salt

Serve with
a splash of olive oil
1/4 cup toasted pumpkin seeds, roughly chopped
dill & chives, chopped

Add all the ingredients to a food processor or blender. Mix it until completely smooth. Season to taste. Serve immediately in glasses or bowls or keep it chilled in the fridge until serving. Top with a splash of olive oil, toasted pumpkin seeds, chopped chives and some dill.

CHILLED STRAWBERRY SOUP   

 

A refreshing, slightly sweet way to start or end your meal.

PREP TIME

40 mins

COOK TIME

10 mins

TOTAL TIME

50 mins

 

Serves 2.

INGREDIENTS

• 2 cups strawberries, hulled and chopped
• ½ tablespoon honey
• zest of 1 orange
• 4 mint leaves, chopped
• ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
• ¼ teaspoon orange extract
• ¼ cup water
• ½ cup kefir
• ¼ cup almond milk (any milk is fine)

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Combine strawberries through water in a small sauce pan and simmer over medium-high heat for about 10 minutes, breaking down strawberries with a spoon as they soften. Remove from heat and let cool to room temperature.
2. Once cooled, combine strawberry mixture with kefir and milk in a blender and puree until smooth. Add more almond milk if you want the soup thinner.
3. Chill soup for at least 30 minutes before serving.
4. Pour into bowls and garnish with mint.

SNAP PEA SOUP WITH MINT AND LEMON Yield: 4-6 servings 1.5 pounds snap peas, stems removed and rinsed 1/2 cup minced shallots 2 1/2 cups chicken or vegetable broth 1/4 cup grated parmesan 2 tablespoons chopped fresh mint zest of one lemon 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice 1/2 teaspoon sea salt freshly ground pepper to taste 1/4 cup creme fraiche (can sub heavy cream or yogurt), plus more to finish Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the peas and blanch for about 6-8 minutes, until tender but still bright green. Drain immediately, and place in an ice bath to retain color and prevent further cooking. Meanwhile, heat a stock pot over a medium low flame and saute the shallots until soft, about 3 minutes. Remove pot from heat. To the stock pot, add the peas, broth, parmesan mint, lemon zest, lemon juice, salt and pepper to taste. Blend using an immersion blender. If you don’t have an immersion blender, you can you use an upright blender, working in two batches. Reheat the soup until just hot. Finish by whisking the creme fraiche into the pureed soup. When serving, top each bowl with a dollop of creme fraiche and a mint leaf.

(Makes 2 large bowls)

Ingredients  

• 1.5 pounds cluster or roma tomatoes
• 1/2 a yellow onion, sliced into a few large pieces
• 2-3 anaheim or piquillo peppers (or 1 small red bell)
• 3 cloves of garlic
• 1-2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 tablespoons sherry vinegar
• 1/4 cup toasted pine nuts or marcona almonds
• 1 slice sourdough bread, stale, toasted, or grilled
• salt & pepper
• water, as needed, to thin
• optional toppings: chopped tomato, cucumber, scallion, chile flakes

Instructions

1. Heat a cast iron skillet, grill pan (or outdoor grill). Dry roast (whole) tomatoes, onion slices, peppers, and garlic (still in it's paper) by placing each directly in the pan, rotating every few minutes until a nice black char marks form all over. You'll probably remove the garlic first, then the peppers and lastly the onion slices and tomatoes. Let everything cool to room temp.
2. Scrape most of the skin off the peppers, and remove seeds and ribbing.
3. Over a bowl, core the tomatoes (saving the juice that comes out).
4. Remove the paper from the garlic and place it into the food processor with the tomatoes, onion, peppers, 1 tablespoon olive oil, 1 tablespoon sherry vinegar, and a generous amount of salt and pepper.
5. Blend until pureed. Add pine nuts and bread and blend again. Taste and adjust.
6. Chill at least 1 hour. The longer this sits the better. Taste again & adjust seasonings before serving.