I went to lunch with a fabulous person that I connected with at Reviewer's Retreat today, and our conversation got me thinking about summer soup... and while it isn't terribly hot here in Charlotte, I started dreaming about chilled soup, so I thought I'd share this fabulous recipe with you! The most important ingredient of this soup is the the fruit. Use only perfectly ripe fruit, and substitute any fruits that are less than perfect.
Summer Fruit Chilled Soup
6 cups (1.5 L) any combination of fresh fruits such as plums, peaches, nectarines, pears, cherries, or berries, pitted as necessary
4 cups (1 L) water
1 cup (250 ml) red or white wine, or additional water
1/2 cup (125 ml) sugar (adjust to taste)
1 cinnamon stick
1 tsp (5 ml) vanilla extract
1 Tbs (15 ml) cornstarch (cornflour) mixed with 2 Tbs (30 ml) cold water
Fresh mint leaves for garnish
Combine the fruit, water, wine, sugar, and cinnamon stick in a pot and bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce the heat and
simmer covered for 15 minutes. Remove the cinnamon stick and add the vanilla extract. Puree the soup in an electric blender
or food processor, or by pressing through a fine sieve. Stir in the cornstarch mixture and heat until slightly thickened. Chill until ready to serve, and adjust the sweetness if necessary. Serve garnished with mint leaves. Serves 4 to 6.
