Cool cucumber soup with a cucumber-herb relish

This is a perfect soup for a summer day. Light, refreshing, and flavorful.

This is a wonderful cookbook that specialises in soups for all seasons. Deborah Madison is one of the first chefs to start the farm-to-table movement in the Bay Area, and her recipes reflect her expertise with vegetables and fresh produce. I have a number of her wonderful cookbooks, each one a masterpiece. This book made me fall in love with soups and taught me how to make a great one.

For more wonderful soup recipes from this cookbook, click here. 

Soup:

1 kg of cucumbers, remove most of the skin and chop into chunks

1 cup buttermilk

3 tablespoons sour cream

1/2 cup of herbs, including basil, cilantro, and dill.

Salt and pepper

Zest and juice of 2 lemons.

Add all ingredients to a blender and purée until a fine liquid is formed. Store in the fridge.

Relish:

2 tablespoons scallions (green onions)

2 tablespoons each of cilantro and basil, finely minced

1 tablespoon dill, finely minced

1 cup of finely chopped cucumber. Remove the seeds if large.

1-2 hot chillies finely minced.

3 tablespoons olive oil

Salt

Mix all ingredients and set aside for 1-3 hours.

To serve, add chilled soup to a bowl and top with a hefty serving of the relish. Keep the extra relish on the table for diners to add as needed.