Emerald Soup; easy summer soups
Some people think summer is not soup season.
Some people would be wrong.
What could be better on a hot, humid day than a bowl of flavorful, chilled soup?
It’s cool, refreshing, and best of all, easy.
It has to be made ahead, forcing one to make it in the cool of the morning, or even the cool of the evening the day before.
Still not convinced?
Simple summer soups – the easy way.
First a word about cold soups: They are almost always vegetable or fruit based and almost always puréed. I would say always, but someone, somewhere, knows of a chilled summer soup that is chunky and meat based…. And then my statement would be wrong. I so hate to be wrong.
They are not, however, always cooked.
The soups that are not cooked are simple: combine the ingredients, purée and chill, allowing the flavors to blend.
For soups that are cooked, there are some tricks to keep actual effort to a minimum.
- Cut or chop all of the vegetables fairly small. This allows for faster cooking.
- If you need to sauté onions or leeks first, do that while you chop the rest of the vegetables.
- After you add all of the vegetables and stock or water, turn the heat up, cover and bring to a boil. Boil for 5 minutes, then turn the heat off – do NOT lift the lid. You are creating a sterile environment inside the pan – lifting the lid destroys that. Let the soup sit until the lid is just cool enough to touch. The residual heat will cook the vegetables (that are chopped, not in big chunks), unattended by you.
- Or let it sit longer. Walk away, go do something…. Your work is done. When you think of it, put the soup in the fridge.
- Chilled soups need stronger flavoring than hot soups. Be generous with the herbs and spices.
- Purée it after it’s chilled. It will be thicker after chilling. Use as much of the cooking liquid as needed to get the consistency you like.
- Taste, adjust seasonings and refrigerate until ready to serve.
The great thing about soups, hot or cold, is one can make them from almost anything edible.
Here are a few ideas to get you started.
And one more – that I serve hot in winter and cold in summer.
Soup is so flexible….
Emerald Soup
I was given the recipe for this soup by the chef of Tidy Dols in London. It’s bright green color and fresh taste have been a favorite for years. This makes enough to serve four.
1 onion
2 ribs celery
2 leeks
1 medium potato
1 tbs butter
10oz (300gr) fresh spinach
3 – 4 cups (24 – 32oz, 750 – 1000ml) chicken stock
more stock if needed to get desired consistency
2 tbs Greek yogurt
Roughly chop onion, celery and thinly slice leeks. Melt butter in medium saucepan over medium heat. Add onions, celery, leeks and sauté until softened.
Roughly chop potato (peeling optional) and add to pan along with 3 cups chicken stock. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, cover and simmer until potatoes are done, about 15 minutes.
Pick through spinach, removing any bad leaves and thick stems. Add to soup when potatoes are done. You will probably have what seems like a huge amount of spinach but it will all fit – just add handfuls of leaves, stir into soup; when they are wilted, add more. When all of the spinach is in the pan and wilted, purée the soup, either in a blender or with an immersion blender. It should be a lovely bright green – thus the name…
Keep warm or chill until ready to serve. Serve with a dollop of yogurt in the center (you can draw a knife through to make patterns…)
What are your favorite summer soups?
I will save this post for when (if) our weather ever warms up! My favorite summer soup is one that my mother used to make and one that usually get’s a shudder from those who weren’t raised on it – jellied chicken soup. My mother would pick the carcass of a chicken we had roasted, simmer the bones with onion and celery and sometimes herbs until the bones fell apart and all the gelatine was rendered out of them, strain and chill, stirring in the picked meat as the gelling started to set. It was served cold and wiggly in clear soup cups, the kind with two handles. It is simply delicious but the gray “jello” is a turnoff to some. I still love it and make it for myself once or twice each summer.
“Chilled soups need stronger flavoring than hot soups. Be generous with the herbs and spices.” Good tip, thanks, as we are into a rash of heat before our “monsoon” season starts in West Texas and chilled soups are on the menu. Along with popsicles, dogsicles, Husky hibernations under the A/C, and generally acting like vampires coming out only at nite.
Love that green color! I have actually never made soup with spinach: after looking at that emerald plate, I will certainly do so.
These soups would tually hit the spot!
In the heat of the day I so wish I could have had a nice refreshing bowl of soup. Not a word usually associated with soup, but fitting none the less.
This gorgeous emerald soup is very similar to a spinach soup I make in the winter…who knew it could be chilled? Thanks Katie!
A great post and I just love the idea/look of the emerald soup!
I’ve been eating “green soup” for weeks now. I had a bumper crop of spring greens, and they don’t keep so well even if you blanch and freeze — so I made soup and froze it. One onion, a couple of carrots, and some potato in a pot with chicken stock (salt pepper garlic etc). Cook until the potato is soft, then add greens – -lots and lots of greens. Cook until greens are done, then whiz with the immersion blender. I freeze it in quart jars, then either reheat or eat as a cold soup (yesterday’s lunch, cold green soup with half an avocado cut into pieces). Yum.
Zoomie, I think it sounds wonderful…. Chicken Consomme….
TikiPundit, we’ve had two hot days; puppies were not happy… and would love some of your monsoon, no rain. Chilled soup is great in the heat.
Simona, I love spinach in soup – and salads, pasta, whatever…
Belinda, make a big batch and keep in the fridge.
Val, I love soup, any time…. cold is great (even when it’s not meant to be)
Elle, it really works well chilled.
Thanks, Dave – got to get to your new site to register… haven’t forgotten.
I did that with all my late summer vegetables last year, and we had ‘cup of soup’ for lunch all winter long. Spring greens would be wonderful!
This is my favorite summer soup!