Though the summer is more than half gone, I’ve only made one chilled soup, the Vichyssoise I made two weeks ago. I know half the folks (or more) cheated and heated it up…at which point is became a very tasty leek and potato soup. Though I used a 50/50 mix of potato and cauliflower to keep the carbs down. But I digress, before even starting.

The idea of an avocado soup for summer is as natural as guacamole…but trust me, this delicious soup isn’t guacamole with water added. As my wife says, “It’s like what you wished avocados tasted like, but they never quite do.”  The reason is that the citric acid from the limes, zest from the various peppers and lightening from adding water all take away the heaviness that avocados have, leaving you with a lighter version of this lovely green fruit. Yes, like the tomato, avocados are a fruit. By the way, the most common avocado eaten in the US is the Hass, and like all varieties, it’s descended from a single “mother tree.” The tree was planted in La Habra Heights, California. by Rudolph Hass, a mail carrier in the 1930s.

Chilled Avocado Soup with Cilantro and Lime
Yield: 10 8 oz servings.

• 8 ripe Hass avocados
• 1 Poblano pepper
• 1 Serrano pepper
• 1/2 large white onion
• 6 cloves garlic
• 1 medium cucumber
  
• 1 1/2 cups chopped fresh tomatoes
• 2 limes
• 1 1/2 tbs kosher salt
• 1 tsp cumin
• 1 can (7 oz) Salsa Verde (Green Mexican Sauce – I use Goya’s)
• 1 bunch fresh cilantro
• 4 cups water

For Garnish:

• sour cream
• cilantro

Split the avocados in half and scoop out the flesh with a soup spoon. Collect it in a large bowl or soup pot. Remove the seeds from the peppers and chop coarsely before adding to the soup. Chop the onions, garlic, tomatoes and cucumber up and add them all as well.

Add a tbs kosher salt, a tsp cumin, and the Salsa Verde. Yes, take it out of the can first. Are we having fun yet?

Rinse the cilantro and separate it from its stems. Add about a 1/4 cup of chopped cilantro to the soup. Squeeze both limes into the soup.

What am I forgetting? Oh, the water. Add four cups (1 qt) water. Lots of recipes call for chicken stock here, but it’s totally not needed, and anytime you can make a great soup vegetarian I say go for it.

Ok, everything’s in the pot that’s going in the pot. Get your immersion blender out and make it smooth. How smooth? Medium smooth.

And now…you’re done. Well, chill it for two or three hours until it gets cold. How cold? Don’t worry about it being too cold, short of freezing, remember it’s being served in the summer.

This is a pretty rich soup, so keep your servings on the smallish side. One recipe I saw suggested avocado soup “shooters”…which is a brilliant party idea.

This soup lends itself to garnish really well. Anything from crumbled tortilla chips, croutons, chilled crab, shrimp, little strips of chicken breast, or a dab of sour cream with some cilantro mixed in, which is how I served it.

The soup is ridiculously easy to make, requires no heating, and will surprise your friends with how good it is.

Links / Sources

• [amazon_link id=”B005F5KB4U” target=”_blank” container=”” container_class=”” ]Goya Salsa Verde (Amazon) [/amazon_link]