Recipe: Cool Cucumber Soup with a Cucumber-Herb Relish (blender or food processor)

COOL CUCUMBER SOUP WITH A CUCUMBER-HERB RELISH

"This herb-green froth of a soup can be whipped together in a blender in moments, then chilled until serving. Served in glasses, it makes a refreshing way to begin a summer dinner, and it's a great convenience to have on hand in the refrigerator for a quick lunch or an afternoon bite.

A cucumber soup can be led in many directions. You can allow dill to predominate and garnish it with dill flowers, use a mixture of herbs as is done here, or use any one of them alone. I find a mixture most interesting-dill, basil, cilantro, and chives with a leaf or two of lovage, the perfect cucumber herb in my opinion. If you want the snap of chile, add minced jalapeno and lime."

THE SOUP:
2 pounds cucumbers
1 cup buttermilk, whole-milk yogurt, sour cream, or a mixture*
1/2 cup coarsely chopped herbs, including basil, dill, cilantro, and lovage
Sea salt and freshly ground pepper
Zest and juice of 2 lemons, or to taste
THE CUCUMBER RELISH:
2 tablespoons minced chives or scallions
1 tablespoon minced dill
2 tablespoons each finely chopped basil and cilantro
1 lovage leaf, finely slivered
2 teaspoons olive oil

1. Peel and seed the cucumbers. Use one to make a cup of small dice and set it aside, then coarsely chop the rest. Puree in a blender or food processor with the buttermilk, chopped herbs, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and the zest and juice from 1 lemon. Chill.

2. Just before serving, toss the reserved diced cucumber with the herbs, a few pinches of salt, the olive oil, and the remaining lemon juice and zest.

3. Taste the soup for salt, pepper, and acidity, adding more lemon juice if needed, then serve in chilled bowls with the cucumber-herb relish.

*You can make the soup ultra-lean if you use buttermilk or richer with sour cream. I fall in between, using buttermilk along with at least a cup of the best whole-milk yogurt I can find, such as Strauss Family Organic Creamery.

Makes 3 to 4 cups
Excerpted from Vegetable Soups from Deborah Madison's Kitchen by Deborah Madison
Copyright 2006 by Deborah Madison. Excerpted by permission of Broadway, a division of Random House, Inc. All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.