I don’t like regular chocolate ice cream but paired...
Creamy Avocado Soup
Somehow, I’ve gotten a bit behind on some of my posts, so despite the fact that the leaves have already changed colors, let’s take a moment to pretend its still summer. What do you say? This soup is so delightfully simple, you could make it in a hurry any day of the week. If you love avocados, you’ll love this–creamy and served cold, the toughest decision is what you’ll want to serve along with this Creamy Avocado Soup.
As you can see, the brilliant plating I had in mind looked a little silly when all put together, but ah well, you win some, you lose some. Flavor-wise though, I was delighted–I cooked some bacon, crumbled it on top, and then sautéed some fresh, local shrimp in the bacon fat (shelled, deveined, and cooked for 3-4 minutes) to go along with this soup and make it more of a self-contained meal. Plus, both the sweet flavor of the shrimp the smokiness of the bacon make a great foil to the silky, rich, salty, smoothness of the avocado. The soup had a wonderfully bright, creamy flavor that really just has that avocado essence we all know and love. Plus, check out that nice color.
- 3 ripe avocados
- 1/2 cup cream
- 1 cup whole milk
- salt
- juice of 1.5 lime
- olive oil
- 1 leek
- 1 serrano pepper
- 1 poblano pepper
- 4 cloves garlic
The star of the show: the avocado. Since this is blender-bound, its ok if you have some that are a little over-ripe, but you still want that attractive, bright green color or else your soup will look as sad and muted as a sad avocado. So anyways, half, pit, and peel the avocado, throwing the flesh in the blender and quickly squeezing the lime juice over them (otherwise, they oxidize and turn brown in the air very quickly).
Since I wanted some other sharper flavors to go along with the avocado, I minced up the pale part of a leek, some peppers, and garlic, briefly sautéing all but the garlic for 5 minutes before adding the garlic for another minute. Slide this into the blender along with the avocado.
Now, pour in the cream and milk and be a bit more generous with the salt than you normally would–you’ll find that the saltiness of this soup will be a bit subdued when you serve it as you’ll serve it cold, not warm. Don’t go crazy with the salt though–its always easier to add more, not to take it back. Just keep tasting and adding as you see fit. Anyways, really blend this until its smooth and creamy.
And at this point, you’re done! You can set the soup aside in the fridge until you’re ready to eat. Like I mentioned above, you’ll probably want to make something to go with it if you intend this soup to be a meal, or you can just serve a small portion as a first course. Either way, enjoy!
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November 12th, 2008 at 2:04 am
Well, isn’t this just the most timely post? Avocados go on sale tomorrow - 2 for $1. Oh yes!
November 12th, 2008 at 4:10 am
This would make a wonderful first course for Christmas. Never had avocado soup before but I love the idea.
November 12th, 2008 at 6:52 am
I’m not really a fan of avocado, but I’m a fan of your pictures and ideas!
November 12th, 2008 at 8:31 am
Blog now (and sleep now) while you can, for once that baby arrives….!
November 12th, 2008 at 9:33 am
I don’t think is silly looking…in fact, I think it’s appetizing. Clever idea to include the kale.
November 12th, 2008 at 10:18 am
Shrimp and bacon … happy! Ihad something similar several years ago, Shrimp, bacon and cream of chickpea soup. I was very special as I am sure this is. It sure looks great. I’ll put it in my accordian file of recipes, it’s organized by the month that the main ingredients are in season!
November 12th, 2008 at 10:56 am
ohhh. for this soup, i would pretend it’s summer! looks amazing!!
November 12th, 2008 at 11:34 am
amazing picture, mike…
November 12th, 2008 at 12:56 pm
This thrills me, I love avocado and think your plating with the shrimp, bacon and tomato looks divine.
That’s it. I’m going to the market. This is SOOO getting made for lunch today. I’m also sending this to my mother. She loves avocado as well!
November 12th, 2008 at 6:28 pm
I LOVE how you plated this! great additions.
November 12th, 2008 at 6:54 pm
Shrimp and bacon work really well together it loks delicious, this would be great as a starter.
November 13th, 2008 at 1:01 am
Love the pictures Mike. This is nice for a change.
November 13th, 2008 at 9:18 am
i’d love to pretend it was still summer–thanks for the excuse to do so. your soup looks so thick and creamy and altogether sensational, i’m tempted to go shell out pick bucks for a few avocados.
November 13th, 2008 at 11:58 am
Mike, avocado & shrimp go so well together but I never thought of making them into a soup.
The colour contrast is an eye-catcher.
November 13th, 2008 at 7:20 pm
Who cares if it’s fall, I’m falling in love with this soup. Get it? Falling in love….it’s fall. Nevermind.
November 14th, 2008 at 8:53 am
Nice looking soup you’ve made there! Love the pictures!
November 14th, 2008 at 9:11 am
There is bacon in the bowl so no way could that plating be considered silly.
November 14th, 2008 at 10:36 pm
I would have to say the shrimp fried in bacon fat was the perfect garnish…very, very nice. And I eat avocado all year round so this is not just for summer!
November 15th, 2008 at 1:32 am
Why are you torturing me so, Mike! I have an avo tree in my garden, yielding the most beautiful butter avos…….you bet I am going to make this….delicious!
November 15th, 2008 at 10:14 am
That looks amazing. I love chilled avocado soup, and this one looks like a delightful combination of my favorite salads in topping and soup form!
November 20th, 2008 at 2:04 am
I’ve never thought of making an entire soup out of avocados. I love avocados and would loooove this.