Recipe: Cucumber Dill Soup

This soup calls for cooking the cucumbers, which may seem odd, but once cooked they blend nicely for a velvety smooth soup. Also, if you have trouble eating raw cucumbers you may be able to enjoy them if they are cooked first. Can be served at room temperature or chilled.

Serves: 4 (as a main dish)

Step 1: Lightly Saute Onion

• 1 Tbsp. olive oil
• 1 cup onion, diced to ½” (from about 1 small onion)

Heat oil in a large saucepan over medium-low heat until fairly hot. Add onion and saute just until soft and translucent, about 5 to 8 minutes.

Step 2:  Add and Simmer Cucumber

• 4 cups cucumber, halved vertically and then sliced about 1” thick (from about 3-4 med. pickling cucumbers)
• 1 cup chicken or vegetable broth

Add cucumbers and broth to onion, cover and bring to a boil, then reduce heat to medium-low and simmer about 15 to 20 minutes until cucumbers are tender but not mushy when tested with a fork, stirring occasionally to cook evenly.

Step 3: Add Seasonings and Garnish

• ½ cup lightly packed parsley leaves
• 1/4 to ½ cup fresh dill fronds, loosely packed, to taste
• 1 Tbsp. lemon zest (from about 1 lemon)
• ½ tsp. sugar
• 1/4 to 1/2 tsp. sea salt, to taste
• Freshly ground pepper to taste
• 2 tsp. butter

• Freshly squeezed lemon juice

Optional Garnish

• Finely chopped nuts (e.g., hazelnuts, pecans, pistachios, almonds

To cooked cucumbers stir in parsley, dill, zest, sugar, salt, pepper and butter. Process in a blender (preferably a Vitamix) until very smooth, being sure to cool before processing.

Taste and adjust seasonings, adding additional dill, salt and pepper, as desired. Serve at room temperature or chilled with a squeeze of fresh lemon and, if desired, a sprinkling of chopped nuts.

NOTES

Cucumbers Being mostly water, they can be fairly bland tasting. What can help: First, cucumbers are best in summer as they are a hot-weather crop, so save this soup for hot days of summer. Second, pickling cucumbers are generally more flavorful than regular cucumbers. You may have to visit a farmers market to find them but if you can’t, then a couple regular cucumbers can be substituted.

Dill It is a very tasty but fairly strong herb, so go slow with it. Start with just 2 Tbsp and then add more as desired. Dried dill can be substituted, about 1-2 tsp. up to 2 Tbsp.