Re: [CH] Avocado soup?!?!
Art Pierce (pierces@cruzio.com)
Sun, 22 Nov 1998 11:09:32 -0800
Date: Sat, 21 Nov 1998 20:55:11 +1100
From: "J. B. Cattley" <jbc@mpx.com.au>
Subject: [CH] Avocado soup?!?!
Saw a book on hot'N'spicy cooking the other day, forget title/author,
[Search results at http://www.amazon.com/ on keywords: "hot spicy" (in
the title): 60 cookbooks.]
but it had a couple of recipes for avocado-lime-chile soup. Is this
feasible?
I have never heard of cooked avocado before; what happens to it?
[Cooking avocado preserves its color a tiny bit more (when soup is later
chilled).]
The recipes basically came down to guacomole with chicken stock, anyone
care
to play guinea pig?
jbc
~~~
Most avocado soup recipes are "guacomole/guacamole (pureed) with chicken
stock" at room temperature, then chilled. Or a chilled soup with chunks
of avocado added. For us guinea pig(s), here's two avocado-lime-chile
recipes that subject the avocado to a little heat - they are basically
the same (one adds fresh ginger), with different garnishes.
1) Avocado Soup,
Corn and Tomato Garnish
1 tablespoon canola oil
2 yellow onions, chopped, about 2 cups
4 cloves garlic, chopped
2 jalapeno chiles, stemmed, seeded if desired, and minced
4 to 5 ripe Haas avocados, peeled and cut into chunks
1 quart chicken stock
1/2 cup crema, creme fraiche or sour cream
1/2 cup chopped cilantro
2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lime juice
Heat oil in Dutch oven (covered pot) over low heat; add onions, garlic,
jalapenos, salt and pepper and cook, stirring, 10 minutes or until
translucent. Add avocados and stock and bring to the simmer. Simmer 15
to 20 minutes or until avocados are soft. Add cream, being back to a
simmer, then puree with immersion blender until very smooth. Stir in
cilantro (or 1/4 of a "motel-sized" bar of soap???) and lime and serve,
topped with corn and tomato garnish.
Yield: 4 to 6 servings
Corn and Tomato Garnish:
2 ears corn, roasted or boiled, kernels cut off and reserved
2 Italian Roma tomatoes, seeded and diced
2 scallions, washed and sliced into thin rings
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1 tablespoon creme fraiche or sour cream
Stir together corn kernels with all other ingredients in a small bowl.
Serve 2 spoonfuls on top of Avocado Soup.
~~~
2) Avocado Soup (with minced ginger),
Radish Garnish and Cilantro Cream Garnish
2 Tb avocado oil
1 Tb walnut oil
(or 3 Tb fruity olive oil )
1 md yellow onion, chopped
4 cloves garlic, peeled and minced
1 piece of ginger,1 1/2 inches long, peeled and minced
3 (or more) serrano or jalapeno chiles, stemmed, seeded and minced
4 c chicken stock
3 ripe avocados, preferably Haas variety
2 limes
1 bn radishes, 10-12
1/2 c sour cream
2 Tb half-and-half
1/4 c cilantro leaves, very finely minced
1 ts ground coriander
salt, to taste
black pepper, fresh ground, to taste
Heat the avocado oil (or two tablespoons of the olive oil) in a saucepan
and add chopped onion. Saute for 5 minutes and add garlic, ginger and 2
of the peppers. Saute for another 5 minutes. Add the stock, simmer for
10 minutes and remove from heat. While the stock and vegetables are
simmering, cut the avocados in half and seed and peel them. Chop the
avocados, toss them with the juice of 1 lime and place about half the
avocado in a blender container. Add hot stock and vegetables until
container is about 3/4 full and process until the mixture is smooth and
liquid. Chill the soup thoroughly, preferably for several hours.
Taste the chilled soup and add salt and more lime juice to taste. Ladle
it into chilled soup bowls. Top each serving with a tablespoon of
cilantro cream and a tablespoon of julienned radishes.
Yield: 4 to 6 servings
Radish Garnish
Cut the radishes in small julienne and toss with the walnut oil or the
remaining olive oil, the juice of 1/2 lime and salt to taste. Chill
until you are ready to use them.
Cilantro Cream Garnish
Stir the sour cream and half-and-half together, add the chopped cilantro
(or 1/8 of a "motel-sized" bar of soap???), the remaining chili pepper,
the ground coriander and salt to taste. Chill until you are ready to use
it.
Variation: "This soup is also delicious when served hot and is an ideal
opening to a hearty Mexican meal."
~~~
Art