One healthy and delicious way to beat the summer heat is by whipping up a chilled vegetable soup. The obvious choice that comes to mind is gazpacho—the tomato- and veggie-loaded cold soup—but why stop there? Another ingredient that makes a good base is squash.
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The recipe I found on Epicurious.com for a Chilled Squash and Leek Soup was a good start but not vegan, so I made a few changes. I actually suggest making even more! This soup has very subtle flavors that can be built upon to create a more complex dish. A few tablespoonfuls of chopped basil, a dollop of vegan sour cream, or even a hint of spice from minced peppers would make the soup even more delicious.
Enjoy!
Chilled Summer Squash and Leek Soup
1 Tbsp. olive oil
3/4 cup chopped leek, or about 1 medium, white and pale green parts only
1 tsp. coriander seeds
1 1/4 lbs. yellow crookneck squash, coarsely chopped
Salt and pepper, to taste
14 oz. vegetable broth
Dash of liquid smoke
1/2 tsp. finely grated lemon peel
•Heat the oil in a heavy large saucepan over medium heat. Add the leek and coriander and cook until almost tender, stirring often, about 6 minutes. Add the squash. Sprinkle with salt and pepper and sauté until just soft, about 3 minutes.
•Add the vegetable broth, liquid smoke, and lemon zest. Bring to boil, reduce heat to medium, and simmer, uncovered, until vegetables are soft, about 10 minutes.
•Working in batches, purée the soup in a blender until smooth. Transfer to a bowl and chill, uncovered, until cold, about 3 hours. Season with additional salt and pepper if desired.
Makes 4 servings
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Comments ( 5 )
yum! i've been looking for a good recipe for chilled summer vegetable soup. i always think of squash as wintery, but zucchini & others are actually summer veggies. yay!
Posted by veggievixen | July 15, 2009 11:54 PM
Posted on July 15, 2009 23:54
This is a really yummy dish.
At first, it looked kinda iffy but it really is good.
Posted by Sarriah | July 16, 2009 1:49 AM
Posted on July 16, 2009 01:49
hey great, incredibly tasty dish...love vegetarian foods...I have a blog with tons and tons of recipes and would love for you to check it out and let me know what you think... Happy Eating!!
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Posted by sara | July 16, 2009 11:37 AM
Posted on July 16, 2009 11:37
This seems so great! I'd be so happy I'd find some of those here in Poland. Maybe I didn't look properly on the market.
Posted by Zoé | July 23, 2009 2:06 PM
Posted on July 23, 2009 14:06
I was looking forward to trying out this chilled summer squash recipe. FInally I had some squash ready to harvest from the garden, and let me say that this squash soup is absolute velvet perfection
Posted by MarthaRay | August 9, 2009 12:11 PM
Posted on August 9, 2009 12:11