Cucumber Soup

I initially made this cold cucumber soup during our first summer back in Sydney with Mini Jones. We had a neighbour who grew masses of cucumbers, chillis and tomatoes in his front garden. He spent hours lovingly tending to them and every time we walked past in peak season, he would give us a handful of his fruits.
Two days in a row he gave us armfuls of Lebanese cucumbers. We like cucumber, especially in the hot summer, but that was a lot of cucumbers! I was stumped as to what to make with them – apart from cucumber sandwiches, of course.

It was over 40 degrees both days, and the second day it reached 44 degrees. There was no way I wanted to cook much, but a cold soup for lunch would be perfect, I thought.
Blending the cucumbers with a handful of mint (the only herb that grew for me that year, was a fluke it happened to go with cucumbers!), some baby spinach, cold water, garlic powder and Greek yogurt; I then let it sit in the fridge to get extra cold.

It was so refreshing! If blistering hot days are forecast I try and remember to have cucumbers in the fridge so I can whizz this healthy cold soup up first thing in the morning. By the time we want lunch it is nicely chilled. It is also a great soup for when you have guests for summer lunch as you can whip it up first thing in the morning, and then leave it in the fridge until ready serve.

How do you make the soup smooth?

You can either use an immersion blender, or regular blender.

How long can I keep this soup for?

The soup is best eaten within 24 hours, as it can seperate when kept longer than this.

Make it Your Cucumber Soup:

Love garlic: use half a clove of raw garlic instead of the garlic powder
Dairy free soup: use a dairy free unsweetened plain yogurt
Vegan soup:  use a dairy free unsweetened plain yogurt
Like Spice: sprinkle a small pinch of dried chilli flakes over the top before serving

For more cold soup ideas, be sure to check out these tasty creations from some talented blogger friends of mine:

Chilled Corn Soup + Crab & Gin Picked Tomatoes from Belly Rumbles – which would also make a show-stopping entertaining dish as it can be served in a bowl or as shots

Cold Beet Soup from Peter’s Food Adventures – a Russian summer favourite, this is a another super (excuse the pun!) refreshing soup!

If you are looking for more summer recipe ideas, why not have a look at my gluten free Watermelon Salad with Mozzarella, light and fresh Smoked Salmon Caesar Salad, or vegan Puttanesca Pasta Salad

Have you made this recipe? Tag me on Instagram #atmrsjoneskitchen or Facebook, or leave a comment below. I’d love to see your creation!