Chilled Strawberry Soup

May 31, 2011

Chilled Strawberry Soup

Varietal: Late-Harvest Riesling

Serves 4 to 6

This interesting dessert-soup recipe comes from my colleague and friend Sharon Kramis, who has been singing the praises of home cooks using local, seasonal produce in their daily meals for many years. Sharon was a student of the late James Beard, and spread his (and her) philosophy through her popular cooking classes and cookbooks such as “Northwest Bounty” (Sasquatch Books, 1999). More recently, she and daughter Julie Kramis-Hearne have co-authored books on cast-iron and Dutch-oven cooking. Sharon is also a long-time consultant with the Anthony’s Homeport restaurants, where she continues to champion the use of the freshest, farm-grown produce and seafood. Serve this “best-of-the-season” strawberry soup with homemade croutons (see the Cook’s Hint, below) when local strawberries are at their sweet peak of perfection.

4 cups fresh strawberries, stems removed and sliced

1 fresh banana, peeled and cut into 4 pieces

1 cup freshly squeezed orange or canned pineapple juice

1 cup light sour cream

1 tablespoon raspberry liqueur or raspberry syrup

2 ice cubes

6 sprigs fresh mint, for garnish

1. In a food processor or blender, pulse the strawberries, banana, orange juice, sour cream, and raspberry liqueur until smooth.

2. Add the ice cubes and swirl briefly to chill the liquid, removing the ice cubes before they melt completely. (Warning: Do not crush the ice!)

3. To serve, divide the soup among small, chilled bowls. Garnish with mint sprigs and serve immediately.

Cook’s Hint: Serve the soup with pound cake “croutons.” To make the croutons, cut a pound cake into 1/2-inch cubes until you have about 1 1/2 cups. Preheat the broiler, then toast the cubes, turning once to brown on two sides. Float the croutons on top of the bowls of soup before serving.

Recipe reprinted from the “Pike Place Market Cookbook: Recipes, Anecdotes, and Personalities from Seattle’s Renowned Public Market” (Sasquatch Books, 2003, $18.95) by Braiden Rex-Johnson.

No Comments »

No comments yet.

RSS feed for comments on this post. TrackBack URL

Leave a comment