Refreshing Iced Soup Recipes For Hot Summer Days By Christine Szalay Kudra

If you associate soup with chilly evenings then you are not alone because most people think about soup when they want something comforting, soothing or warming. However, there are also chilled soup recipes and iced soup recipes which are ideal for cooling you down when the weather becomes warmer. Iced soup is far healthier than ice cream but it has a similar effect.

The definition of a soup is a meat, poultry, vegetable or fish stock or broth which often contains solid pieces of food but there are exceptions to this rather broad definition. You might have tried gazpacho which is an iced Spanish soup, made primarily with tomatoes, bell peppers and olive oil. This is very different from a canned pumpkin soup recipe or chicken soup but it is equally as tasty.

Perhaps you have been lucky enough to try a delicious fruit soup recipe like strawberry soup or melon soup. These are incredibly refreshing and delicious. You can serve fruit soups as appetizers or desserts.

Types of Iced Soup

Most iced or chilled soups are vegetable- or fruit-based, rather than meat- or fish-based, just because they taste better that way. Cucumber soup is a great one to serve chilled, as is pea and green onion soup or tomato soup.

If you prefer something sweeter, what about strawberry, cherry or pineapple soup? Any of these would make an exciting recipe for a dinner party and fruit soups tend to be naturally bright and colorful, which makes them look appealing. Many can be garnished with a swirl of cream, which also adds to the flavor.

Recipe for Chilled Minted Pea Soup

This delicious and bright green soup is ideal for a warm day or even for a picnic. You will need to let it cool down and then chill it for a few hours to make sure it is thoroughly chilled. Serve it with ice cubes to make it even colder. You can use sour cream or plain yogurt to garnish this minted pea soup and this recipe makes enough to serve eight people.

What you will need:

1 chopped lettuce 1 tablespoon olive oil 1 1/2 lbs fresh peas 1 1/2 pints vegetable broth 6 sliced green onions 1/4 cup chopped fresh mint 2 chopped cloves garlic Salt and white pepper, to taste Sour cream, to garnish

How to make it:

Saute the garlic and green onions in the oil for about 5 minutes or until tender. Add the broth and bring the mixture to a boil. Add the peas, mint and lettuce and simmer for 3 minutes or until the peas are soft.

Blend the soup until it is smooth. You might need to do this in batches. Add salt and pepper, to taste. Let the soup cool, then cover it and chill it overnight or for at least four hours. Decorate the soup with fresh mint leaves and sour cream just before serving.

Iced soups are great as dinner party appetizers or as a way to cool down when the weather is hot. There are lots of iced soup varieties and you might fancy trying a pumpkin soup recipe or even an easy canned pumpkin soup recipe. These are great hot or chilled.

Find all the best pumpkin soup recipes at PumpkinSoup.org Article Source: Refreshing Iced Soup Recipes For Hot Summer Days