This month’s Kosher Connection link-up features chilled soups. It’s June, and the weather is heating up. Always happy to have a cool treat.
I love challenges like this. I never really make cold soup. I do love a good gazpacho every so often, but chilled soups don’t really happen in this kitchen. If I made hot chicken soup every week in the summer, nobody would complain. We’re just a warm soup kind of family and a little heat doesn’t usually stop me. Myself excluded that is. I’m not in to warm soups on a hot day.
This challenge got me thinking about different flavors that I love. I wasn’t going to do a gazpacho. That’s been done. I have several friends that love chilled fruit soups, but that’s just not me. I thought about the various herbs that I have growing on my deck and then looked to the beautiful early summer veggies I’ve been seeing at the farmer’s markets. I knew I had to focus on some seasonal vegetables and herbs. At the market today, I came upon some beautiful peas. Yum! These English peas were amazing and so sweet. I then turned to my favorite herb – my basil plant. I had to turn these two in to soup.
I began by sauteeing up some shallots and garlic in a bit of butter and olive oil. I then added the peas and the chopped basil. After they cook for a few minutes, I added in some vegetable broth and let the soup cook a bit.
Once the peas were sufficiently cooked, I pureed the soup with my immersion blender and added some Greek yogurt to the soup.
I removed the soup from the heat and then began to cool it down. If you’d like, you can transfer the soup to a bowl and then sit it over a larger bowl of ice for a quick chill down.
I served the soup chilled with some additional Greek yogurt stirred in. Love the flavor. The sweetness of the peas combined with the basil really work well together. Will definitely make this again.
- 1 tbsp. butter
- 1 tbsp. olive oil
- 1 shallot, chopped
- 2 cloves garlic, chopped
- 2 tsp. salt
- 2 tsp fresh ground pepper
- ¾ pound English peas (or use frozen petite peas)
- 1 cup chopped basil
- 2 cups vegetable broth
- 2 tbsp. Greek yogurt or sour cream (plus extra for garnishing)
- additional salt and pepper to taste
- Heat up the butter and olive oil in a medium-size pot.
- Add in the garlic and shallot and saute until soft.
- Stir in the salt and pepper.
- Stir in the peas and the basil. Saute or a minute or two.
- Add in the vegetable broth.
- Let the mixture come to a boil. Cover the pot and turn down the heat.
- Cook for about 7 minutes.
- After about 7 minutes, the peas should be cooked enough.
- Use a standard blender or an immersion blender to puree the soup.
- Stir in some Greek yogurt.
- Taste the soup a bit. Add additional salt and pepper as needed.
- Serve the soup garnished with additional basil and yogurt.
- Enjoy!
Don’t forget to check out some of the other great cold soups as part of the Kosher Connection link-up!
