Zucchini & Fresh Pea Soup

We ate half of this soup hot and enjoyed it, but the leftovers were even better cold, I thought. Which is not a bad thing at this time of year; although of course being us we managed to eat the hot soup when it was 30° out and the cold soup when it was 20° out. One of these days I will get it right. I have to admit this is more pea-ish than zucchin-y but unless you are Mr. Ferdzy and think zucchini is the best vegetable ever, you will probably be happy with that.

4 to 6 servings
30 minutes prep time


4 cups chicken or vegetable stock
2 or 3 bay leaves

2 cups shelled fresh peas
1 kilo (2 pounds) medium zucchini; about 6
3 to 4 cloves of garlic
1 tablespoon sunflower seed oil
1/4 medium nutmeg, finely grated
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1 teaspoon dried dillweed
1 teaspoon dried mint
salt & pepper to taste

Once the peas are shelled, put the stock and bay leaves into a soup pot and bring them to a simmer. Meanwhile wash, trim and slice the zucchini. Peel and mince the garlic.

Heat the oil in a large skillet. Sauté the zucchini on both sides until lightly browned. Add the peas and garlic, and sauté for a minute or two more, until the garlic is fragrant and the peas begin to change colour. Sprinkle the seasonings over the vegetables and mix in well.

Turn off the heat and remove the vegetables to a blender. Add a little of the hot stock, and purée the vegetables until very smooth. Add the purée to the stock and simmer for a few minutes to blend the flavours. Remove the bay leaves and serve hot if you like, but it is if anything better when served cold. A little dab of thick yogurt or sour cream will do it nothing but good.




Last year at this time I made Pan-Fried Trout.