Creamy Cucumber Soup | Ice Cream (or Sorbet) with Berry Sauce & Shortbread Cookies

It’s Friday. Also it is hot. How about dinner that doesn’t require much, if any, hot cooking? And before you say, “Ewww, cucumber soup,” when you’ve never even tried cucumber soup, just go on a leap of faith and give it a test. You might be surprised. Worst case you end up making a peanut butter sandwich, which is what my children get if they don’t like the dinner I make. So there.

Happy weekend.

Love to Cook: This rich, creamy recipe from Eating Well does require a bit of cooking, but not much. And you can serve it warm or room temperature if you don’t have time to let it cook fully. With the inclusion of avocado, it’s more satisfying than soups that are just cucumber, yogurt and cream. If you’re feeling adventuresome and have the time, try this 2 ingredient/no-churn ice cream, which you can amend with flavoring to taste (Kahlua, anyone?). And if you really want to turn on the oven to bake some shortbread cookies you can; but buying cookies for once won’t kill you. For the sauce just whip some berries in the blender with a 2 count of Chambord or other liqueur. You can make a more complicated version, but why would you?

Weeknight Reality: This version of cucumber soup is quick to make but best when it has time to hang out in the refrigerator for several hours before serving – not for temperature, really, but for the flavors to develop. If you have time to make it in the morning or at lunch time, great. If not, then skip to the recipe below, which you can serve immediately. For the ice cream, how about a trio of flavors selected from your market’s freezer section, paired with Pepperidge Farm Bordeaux cookies and some fresh berries?

Need a Miracle: This cucumber soup is the last of the three cold soup options provided on this great post. Each soup is ready in just a few minutes, really. If you don’t have an hour for the soup to chill (develop), then just increase the amount of seasonings. Follow the ice cream/cookie/berry directions above.