Soup Night (37 page)

Recipe from Marilee Corey,
Unity Church
, Salem, Oregon

Serves 6–8

Marilee says: Last year I went on a cruise for the first time in my life, one of the beautiful Princess ships — what a treat! It was fantastic in every way, including the wonderful food. I really loved this fruit soup, but adapted it so it fits our family better (left out the wine, used half-and-half rather than cream, and added a different garnish).

• 2 cups peeled and cored apple chunks
  
• 1 cup apple juice
  
• 2 cups peeled and pitted peach chunks
  
• ¹
  ⁄
  ₂
  cup orange juice
  
• 2 cups half-and-half
  
• 1 cup low-fat plain yogurt
  
• 1 tablespoon honey
  
• ¹
  ⁄
  ₂
  teaspoon vanilla extract
  
• ¹
  ⁄
  ₂
  teaspoon ground cinnamon
  
• ¹
  ⁄
  ₂
  teaspoon ground nutmeg
  
• 1 cup peach nectar
  

1. 1.
   Purée the apples with the apple juice in a blender or food processor; pour into a large bowl.
   
2. 2.
   Purée the peaches with the orange juice in the same blender or food processor; pour into the bowl with the apple purée. Add the half-and-half, yogurt, honey, vanilla, cinnamon, and nutmeg; stir until thoroughly blended.
   
3. 3.
   Cover the bowl and refrigerate for 1 hour or more.
   
4. 4.
   Serve the soup well chilled. Place the peach nectar into a small pitcher, and dribble a little into each individual bowl; it beads up and floats on top. Very pretty.
   

Variations:
Use low-fat vanilla yogurt and skip the honey and vanilla. Slice fresh mint leaves into ribbons and use as garnish. For a very elegant garnish, float one edible flower (rose petals, maybe) on each serving.

Make ahead?
It’s necessary — see step 3.

For large crowds:
When I first tasted this delicate soup, there were about 80 people in attendance, so it’s safe to say this recipe can be expanded.

Serves 6

The familiar flavors of a classic dessert, in a soup bowl.

• 4 cups strawberries, hulled and sliced
  
• 1
  ¹
  ⁄
  ₂
  pounds rhubarb, cut into 1-inch chunks (about 5 cups)
  
• 2 cups orange juice
  
• ³
  ⁄
  ₄
  cup sugar, more or less
  
• ³
  ⁄
  ₄
  cup peeled and chopped orange sections
  

1. 1.
   Set aside 6 perfect strawberry slices for garnishes.
   
2. 2.
   Combine the remaining strawberry slices, rhubarb, and orange juice in a large soup pot over medium-high heat. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat and simmer, uncovered, until the rhubarb has softened, about 10 minutes. Remove from the heat, and stir in sugar to taste. Chill until cool enough to handle.
   
3. 3.
   Purée the mixture in a blender or food processor until velvety smooth. Pour the mixture into a bowl and add the orange sections. Cover and refrigerate until well chilled.
   
4. 4.
   Garnish each serving with a strawberry slice.
   

Variations:
This is wonderful as is, but you could also add a hint of spice, such as ground cardamom, nutmeg, or allspice. Just a pinch, please; leave your guests guessing.

Make ahead?
Yes; see step 3.

For large crowds:
When strawberries are at their peak, and you have access to a bumper crop of rhubarb, you could easily make a gallon or two.

Recipe from
Eric and Kat Meyer
, Cleveland, Ohio

Serves 6

Here’s another version of strawberry soup, this one creamy with yogurt and sour cream. One big advantage: it’s made with frozen berries, so it can be enjoyed even when strawberry season is past.

• 2 pounds frozen strawberries, thawed, with juice
  
• ¹
  ⁄
  ₂
  cup sour cream
  
• 1 cup plain or vanilla yogurt
  
• 1 cup whole milk, more or less
  
• ¹
  ⁄
  ₄
  cup sugar (optional)
  
• Fresh strawberries, for garnish
  
• Chopped mint leaves, for garnish
  

1. 1.
   Purée the strawberries, sour cream, and yogurt in a blender until smooth. Add enough milk for the desired consistency. Add sugar, if desired. (In our house there’s always a battle between the sweet-tooths and non-sweet-tooths.)
   
2. 2.
   Pour the soup into a bowl, cover, and chill for 4 to 8 hours. Stir well before serving (add more milk if needed). Garnish with fresh strawberries, if available; mint leaves if not.
   

Make ahead?
It’s necessary; see step 2.

For large crowds:
Easily doubled, or more.

Serves 6

Elsewhere you will find recipes for traditional gazpacho, featuring summer-fresh vegetables, and Anna Bueno’s fabulous strawberry-tomato creation (
page 240
). This one is almost all fruit, balanced with a base of tomatoes so it doesn’t taste like a fruit smoothie. It’s also very adaptable. Don’t like kiwi? Leave it out. Can’t find blueberries? Double up on the strawberries. Etc.

• 3 large ripe tomatoes, peeled and seeded
  
• 1 tablespoon sugar
  
• 3 cups orange juice
  
• 2 teaspoons grated orange peel
  
• 1 papaya, seeded, peeled, and cubed
  
• 1 cantaloupe, seeded, peeled, and cubed (about 2 cups)
  
• 1 small honeydew melon, seeded, peeled, and cubed (about 2 cups)
  
• 1 cup fresh strawberries, sliced
  
• 1 cup fresh blueberries
  
• 1 kiwifruit, peeled and sliced
  
• 1 large apple, cored but not peeled, cubed
  
• Fresh mint, for garnish (optional)
  

1. 1.
   Purée the tomatoes in a blender or food processor. Add the sugar, orange juice and peel, papaya, and half the cantaloupe and honeydew. Blend until smooth. Pour into a large bowl; stir in the reserved melon, strawberries, blueberries, kiwifruit, and apple.
   
2. 2.
   Cover; chill 4 to 6 hours or until very cold. Garnish with fresh mint.
   

Make ahead?
Yes, see step 2.

For large crowds:
This lends itself well to making large batches because it is so adaptable. Depending on what’s available on any given day, any fresh fruit in almost any combination works just fine.

Serves 6–8

This delicate fruit soup is a good one to have in your summer repertoire because it calls for ingredients you might have on hand already. It’s perfect when you’re between trips to the farmers’ market. Any fresh fruit for garnishes is a sweet bonus.

• 2 (17-ounce) cans apricot halves in light syrup
  
• 1 teaspoon orange zest
  
• ¹
  ⁄
  ₂
  cup orange juice, freshly squeezed if possible
  
• ¹
  ⁄
  ₄
  teaspoon ground cardamom
  
• 1 cup plain yogurt
  

• Raspberries
  
• Blueberries
  
• Orange slices
  

1. 1.
   Drain the apricots, saving the syrup.
   
2. 2.
   Combine the apricot syrup, half the apricots, the orange zest and juice, and the cardamom in a blender or food processor and purée until smooth. Add the yogurt, and blend until combined. Chop the remaining apricots into bite-size pieces.
   
3. 3.
   Pour the soup into a bowl, stir in the chopped apricots, cover, and refrigerate for at least 1 hour.
   
4. 4.
   Garnish with fresh raspberries, blueberries (a particularly nice color combination), or thin slices of orange.
   

Make ahead?
Yes. See step 3.

For large crowds:
Easily and economically multiplied.

Makes 8 (2- by 4-inch) pieces

It’s almost like a dessert — a cornbread rich with orange and fresh blueberries. This is a wonderful accompaniment to any tomato-based cold soup.

• 1 cup all-purpose flour
  
• 1 cup whole-wheat flour
  
• 2 cups cornmeal
  
• ²
  ⁄
  ₃
  cup packed brown sugar
  
• 2 tablespoons baking powder
  
• Pinch salt
  
• 4 tablespoons butter, melted
  
• 2 cups milk
  
• 3 eggs
  
• 1 orange, seeded but unpeeled, chopped
  
• 2 cups fresh blueberries
  

1. 1.
   Preheat the oven to 350°F; grease an 8-inch square baking pan.
   
2. 2.
   Sift together the all-purpose flour, whole-wheat flour, cornmeal, brown sugar, baking powder, and salt.
   
3. 3.
   Heat the butter and milk in a small saucepan, just warm enough to melt the butter; cool to lukewarm. Combine the eggs, orange, and milk mixture in a blender or food processor, and blend until well mixed. Add the liquid mixture to the dry ingredients, and stir gently; don’t overdo it. Gently fold in the blueberries.
   
4. 4.
   Pour the batter into the prepared pan, and bake 20 to 25 minutes until golden brown. Check the bread at 20 minutes by dipping a toothpick in the center; if it tests clean, your cornbread is done. Cool and cut into pieces.
   

Make ahead?
Sure, if you have to. Rewarm at 300°F for a few minutes.

For large crowds:
Baking can be tricky, so you’re better off making this recipe two times than trying to double it.

Recipe from
Albertina’s Restaurant
, Portland, Oregon

Makes 10–12 medium biscuits

Warm cheese biscuits and cold soup — great combination.

• 1 cup sifted all-purpose flour
  
• 1
  ¹
  ⁄
  ₂
  teaspoons baking powder
  
• ¹
  ⁄
  ₄
  teaspoon salt
  
• 2 tablespoons cold butter, cut into bits
  
• 6 ounces cheddar cheese, grated (1
  ¹
  ⁄
  ₂
  cups)
  
• ¹
  ⁄
  ₂
  cup milk
  

1. 1.
   Preheat the oven to 400°F. Grease a baking sheet.
   
2. 2.
   Sift together the flour, baking powder, and salt. Rub the butter into the flour mixture. (A food processor is very handy for this.) Add the cheese, then stir in the milk to form a soft, sticky dough.
   
3. 3.
   Drop the dough by rounded spoonfuls onto the prepared baking sheet. Bake 12 to 15 minutes until pale golden brown.
   

Make ahead?
Yes, if you need to, but these go together so quickly and they’re so wonderful straight from the oven, I hope you’re able to make them just before supper’s ready. I don’t want you to miss all the swoons.

For large crowds:
This recipe is easily doubled.

Recipe from Ariana Jacob,
Portland Stock
, Portland, Oregon

Serves 6–8

Ariana says: I created this salad in 2000 for the Red Horse Secret Cafe in Olympia, Washington. We served it at the very first Stock dinner in July 2009 — and several times since, due to popular request.

• 4 medium yellow potatoes (such as Yellow Finn or Yukon Gold), unpeeled
  
• 4 medium red beets
  
• ¹
  ⁄
  ₄
  cup olive oil (or more to taste)
  
• 2–4 tablespoons umeboshi plum vinegar (see note below)
  
• 1 red onion, finely chopped
  
• 3 tablespoons fresh tarragon, minced, or 2–3 teaspoons dried
  
• Freshly ground black pepper (optional)
  

1. 1.
   Bring 2 saucepans of salted water to a boil. Add the potatoes to one pan and simmer until tender but not falling apart, 10 to 12 minutes. Add the beets to the other pan and simmer until tender but not falling apart, about 15 minutes.
   
2. 2.
   When the potatoes and beets are tender, drain and run cold water over them until they are cool enough to handle. Peel off the skins, cut into large bite-size chunks, and put them in a large bowl.
   
3. 3.
   Pour the olive oil and umeboshi vinegar over the warm potato mixture; mix well. Stir in the onion, tarragon, and pepper to taste. Mix everything together well, cover, and chill; the salad tastes best after sitting overnight in the refrigerator.
   

Make ahead?
Yep — it’s best if chilled overnight.

For large crowds:
Since Ariana serves this salad at Portland Stock events (see
page 244
), which draw up to 100 people, I think it’s safe to say her recipe can be expanded.