Not all soups need cold weather and a roaring fire to taste good. There are some great soups that have been cooled down for summer. Gazpacho and vichyssoise are two rather well-known cold soups, but there are many others, including fruit-based dessert soups. It’s a delicious way to increase your fruit and vegetable consumption and to enjoy summer’s bounty.

• Gazpacho is a delicious combination of crisp vegetables in a well-seasoned tomato broth (see archived recipe)
• Vichyssoise is a cold potato soup flavored with fresh leeks (see this month’s recipe)
• Cold tomato soup is a great way to use those home-grown tomatoes; season with fresh thyme and top with garlic croutons
• Chilled split pea soup can be made with 1% buttermilk and garnished with fresh mint
• Melon soup is a no-cook dish made with pureed cantaloupe, honeydew, or watermelon and a creamy low fat yogurt or fruit juice base

These dishes are colorful and even cream-based soups can be modified to be low in fat and calories (see this month’s recipe). They are perfect for summer meals.

For Your Information

Soup Spices

Here are some herbs and spices that work well in soups:

• bay leaves
• basil
• cilantro
• cumin
• dill
• marjoram
• mint
• oregano
• red pepper
• thyme
• summer savory
• white pepper

Healthy Recipes

VICHYSSOISE

• 1 tablespoon light (5 grams fat per tablespoon) margarine
• 1½ cups chopped leeks
• ½ cup chopped onion
• 1 quart boiling water
• 6 medium potatoes, peeled, chopped
• 1 tablespoon salt
• 2½ cups fat-free plus milk *
• 2½ cups fat-free half and half
• ¼ cup chopped chives

Melt margarine in large saucepan over medium high heat. Add leeks and onions; saute until soft. Add boiling water, potatoes and salt. Cook, uncovered, 30 minutes or until potatoes are tender; drain. Pour mixture into bowl of food processor or blender; puree. Pour mixture back into saucepan. Add milk; bring back to boil, stirring frequently. Remove from heat; cool for 15 minutes; add half and half. Chill. Garnish each serving with chives.

* Specially processed fat-free milk with the consistency of 2% milk.

Yield: 10 servings

Nutrients per serving:

• Calories 162
• Cholesterol 6 mg
• Fat 1 g (5%)
• Sodium 891 mg
• Carbohydrate 31 g
• Protein 6 g

Serving Suggestions

A cup of vichyssoise served with a vegetable salad topped with grilled salmon and a vinaigrette dressing would make a memorable luncheon menu.

Calorie Conscious

The original high-fat version of Vichyssoise called for butter, whole milk, and cream. By replacing those with light margarine, skim milk, and fat free half & half, the calories were cut in half and 23 grams of fat virtually disappeared!