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A dish best served cold
Feature
Soup recipes can be your best friends in your culinary repertoire. They are versatile enough to be appetisers, entrees, main courses or even dessert: hot ones comfort you when you’re sick, and light, cool and refreshing cold soups can help you cool down during the summer heat.
Made with an abundance of fresh vegetables and herbs, these cold soups take far less time to cook than the hearty, slow-simmered ones of winter. That means they help to keep the kitchen, the cook and the diners cool.
Most soups that can be prepared ahead of time are equally good served reheated, chilled or somewhere in between. Packed into a pre-chilled thermos, they also travel nicely in a lunchbox or picnic basket, and can be a healthful alternative to cold drinks. Here is a selection of the most popular recipes – and something more unusual for desert.
Gazpacho (Delia Smith)
Gazpacho soup was invented for the summer. Refreshingly cold on hot summer days, this classic Spanish soup deliciously combines the best of summer vegetables. Make sure you only use the freshest, highest quality ingredients for this soup.
Ingredients:
700g firm red ripe tomatoes
10cm piece of cucumber, peeled and chopped
2 or 3 spring onions, peeled and chopped
2 cloves garlic, crushed
half a large red or green pepper, deseeded and chopped
1 heaped tsp fresh chopped basil, marjoram or thyme
4 tbsp olive oil
25ml wine vinegar
salt and freshly milled black pepper
For the garnish:
half a large red or green pepper, deseeded and very finely chopped
10cm piece of cucumber, peeled and finely chopped
2 spring onions, finely chopped
1 hard boiled egg, finely chopped
1 heaped tbsp fresh chopped parsley
salt and freshly milled black pepper
To serve:
small croutons
4 ice cubes
Instructions:
Begin by placing the tomatoes in a bowl and pouring boiling water over them; after a minute or two the skins will loosen and slip off very easily. Halve the tomatoes, scoop out and discard the seeds and roughly chop the flesh.
Now place the tomatoes, cucumber, spring onions, crushed garlic and chopped pepper in a liquidiser, adding a seasoning of salt and pepper, the herbs, oil and wine vinegar.
Then blend everything at top speed until the soup is absolutely smooth.
Taste to check the seasoning and pour the soup into a bowl. Stir in a little cold water to thin it slightly – anything from 150–275ml – then cover the bowl with foil and chill thoroughly.
To make the garnish, simply combine all the ingredients with a seasoning of salt and freshly milled black pepper, and hand them round at the table together with small croutons of bread fried till crisp in olive oil, well drained and cooled. Serve the soup with four ice cubes floating in it.
Classic Vichyssoise - Chilled Leek and Potato Soup
Ingredients:
1 tablespoon butter
3 leeks, bulb only, sliced into rings
1 onion, sliced
5 potatoes, peeled and thinly sliced
salt and pepper to taste
1/4 tsp dried thyme
1/2 tsp dried marjoram
1 bay leaf
1.2 litres chicken broth
55ml cup double cream
Instructions:
In a large saucepan melt the butter over a low heat. Add leeks and onion, cover and cook for 10 minutes.
Add potatoes and season with salt and pepper. Add thyme, marjoram, bay leaf and stir well. Cover the pan and continue to cook for 12 minutes.
Add chicken stock and bring to the boil, reduce heat and cook, partially covered for 30 minutes.
Puree soup in blender or food processor and cool.
Prior to serving add cream.
Old English Summer Soup (Delia Smith)
Ingredients:
350g potatoes, peeled and finely diced
4 or 5 spring onions, finely chopped (including the green parts)
1 small, round lettuce, washed, patted dry and shredded
half a medium cucumber, chopped (no need to peel)
75g butter
850ml chicken or vegetable stock
snipped fresh chives, to garnish
salt and freshly milled black pepper
Instructions:
In a medium saucepan, melt the butter gently, then add the potatoes, spring onions, lettuce and cucumber. Stir everything round in the butter then, keeping the heat very low, put a lid on and let everything sweat for 10 minutes.
Now pour in the stock, stir, add some salt and freshly milled black pepper and bring to the boil. Then reduce the heat to low, put the lid on and let it simmer gently for another 20 minutes. Leave the soup to cool a little, then puree the whole lot in a blender.
If you need to do this in two batches, it is helpful to have a bowl to hand to put the first batch in. Finally, check the seasoning and serve it with the freshly snipped chives stirred in at the last moment or sprinkle a few into each bowl.
Mango and cucumber soup
Ingredients:
2 mangoes, peeled and pitted
2 cucumbers
3 tbsp red onion, chopped
3 tbsp fresh lime juice, or to taste
2 tbsp chopped fresh coriander
220ml cold apple cider or juice
Instructions:
Finely chop one mango and one cucumber and set aside. Coarsely chop remaining mango and cucumber and puree with a little water in a blender until almost smooth.
Transfer to a bowl and stir in finely chopped mango and cucumber, onion, lime juice and the cider or juice. Place bowl in a larger bowl of ice and cold water and stir until cool or refrigerate until chilled
Just before serving, stir in the coriander and salt to taste.
Picture caption: Cold comfort – gazpacho is a summer sensation.
MyVillage 15th August
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