Cool Cantaloupe Soup

This soup is amazingly refreshing, light and tasty. Creamy and smooth, it makes me feel as though I'm having dessert for dinner. If you haven't used Agave Nectar before as a sweetener, it's like a more floral honey - really delicious.

Cool Cantaloupe Soup
(4 big servings)

6 lb cantaloupe, peeled and seeded
1 1/2 c coconut milk
3 tbs ginger, grated
3 tbs lemon juice
3 tsp Adave Nectar
pinch of salt
garnish with chives

1) Blend all ingredients.

2) Serve garnished with chives, and some diced cantaloupe pieces.

Raw Cream of Mushroom Soup

This is a very rich tasting raw recipe for mushroom lovers. Be sure to get some nutritional yeast as it gives the salty, creamy flavor. I used button mushrooms, which I usually avoid, and it turned out just fine. Beware, the order of blending is important to the texture.

Raw Cream of Mushroom Soup
(2 servings)

2 c water
1/2 c sunflower seeds
2/3 c mushrooms, chopped fine
2 tbs Nutritional yeast
1 large clove garlic
few pinches salt
few grinds of pepper

1) Blend the sunflower seeds and the water until smooth

2) Add the garlic, yeast, salt and pepper and blend

3) Add the mushrooms and breifly blitz until you get the desired texture.

Watermelon Soup

This is one of those recipes that I call "mostly raw" - it's all raw up until the feta. Furthermore, I'll concede that at least on paper this recipe looks kind of gross. In practice, though, it's light, slightly spicy and incredibly refreshing. I prefer my soups smooth and easily assembled, so where I roughly chop and puree you could easily finely dice and mince into a chunkier version.


Watermelon Soup
(serves 4-6)

4 c seedless watermelon, cubed
2 Roma tomatoes, chopped
1 serrano chile, chopped
1 cucumber, peeled, seeded and chopped
4 tbs red onion, chopped
2 tsp red wine vinegar
4 tbs fresh dill
1/3 c olive oil
Kosher salt
freshly ground pepper
handful of crumbled feta

1) Throw everything in a large bowl or blender and puree to desired consistency.

2) Correct the seasoning, and garnish with a sprinkling of dill and feta.

Raw Alfredo with Zucchini, Peas and Pepper

Before I go any further with the raw recipe stuff I think I should note that I am not a raw foodist, nor have I "gone raw". Currently, however, I am enjoying a diet that is about 2/3 raw. I'm not a big fan of revolutions, particularly the culinary kind, and I don't think anything fares well in the extreme. That is to say, raw recipes suit me and my lifestyle very well at the moment, but I do not think it is the great cure for all ills, and I'm not about to give up cooking in favor of low bone density.

All that out of the way, this recipe rocks. It's still very much "chick food" in my opinion, but I think it's really tasty, interesting, and very satisfying. All ingredients (honey, pine nuts, etc.) are of the raw variety. I use my v-slicer for the zucchini, which makes quick work of it.

Raw Alfredo with Zucchini, Peas and Pepper
(serves 4)

3/4 c coconut water (Rosauers and the Co-Op stock it)
2 tbs lemon juice
1 clove garlic
1 tsp kosher salt
1 c pine nuts
1/4 tsp nutmeg
pinch of allspice
pinch of ground pepper
1/4 young coconut meat (I replaced these with flakes in a pinch and it worked fine)
1 1/2 tsp honey
1 tsp Nutritional Yeast (bulk bins at Co-Op)
1 red bell pepper, chopped
1 c peas
4 zucchini, sliced into ribbons
handful of parsley garnish

1) Combine all ingredients except the peas, zucchini and red pepper in a blender or food processor and puree til smooth.

2) Pour over the zucchini noodles, peas and red peppers.

Raw!

Spring and summer are a great time to try out some raw food recipes. Not only is produce abundant but you'll likely be craving lighter, fresher meals. I saw this recipe in Food and Wine magazine and I increased and altered the quantities a bit. I haven't found any sweet corn out West that holds up to my Midwest sweet corn experiences, so I tried it with frozen sweet corn and it turned out just fine. Note, of course, that freezing food is considered destructive by raw foodies so if you're really into the whole gone raw thing, get fresh corn.

This is a really tasty soup, though be sure to blend it to your desired consistency. If you don't get it at least relatively smooth it just looks like pancake batter. You can reserve some of the corn kernels for a garnish, if that's your thing. It's really easy to make so I've found myself making a batch at the beginning of the week and taking it it to work for lunch.

Raw Sweet Corn and Cashew Soup
(serves 8)

8 large ears of sweet corn or two packages of frozen corn
4 c water
1 c raw cashews
1 large or 2 small cloves of garlic
6 tbs olive oil
3-4 tsp kosher salt
freshly ground pepper
handful of cilantro, chopped

1) Combine all ingredients and puree until smooth (food processor or blender/immersion blender).

2) Garnish with cilantro and serve.