SPICY COLD PEACH SOUP WITH PEEKYTOE CRAB
Serves 4 as a first course
The soup base is inspired by the liquados of Mexico and Central America. These are basically fruit purees often made with the addition of milk and spices and are a refreshing drink on a hot day. The peekytoe crab story is an interesting one. These are Maine rock or sand crabs which were pretty much a throwaway by-product of lobster fishing before a brilliant marketing move changed their name to “peekytoes” around 1997. They are much prized today for their sweet delicate flavor. They can’t be shipped live but the fresh picked meat is available during the summer. Fresh Dungeness crab can be substituted.
1-1/2 pounds (3 medium) dead ripe yellow peaches or nectarines, pitted
3 tablespoons fresh lime juice
1/3 cup thick Greek style yogurt
1/4 teaspoon chopped chipotle in adobo or to taste
1/4 cup fresh orange juice
1 small fresh Persian cucumber (3 ounces)
Fine Sea salt
6 ounces fresh peekytoe crab meat carefully picked over to remove any shell
1 tablespoon crème fraiche, if desired
In a blender add the peaches, lime juice, yogurt, chipotle and orange juice and puree. Strain thru a medium mesh strainer to remove any bits of skin and chill. Can be made 2 hours ahead. Adjust seasoning to your taste.
With a mandolin or knife slice the cucumber very thinly lengthwise and lightly salt. Ladle the soup into flat soup plates. Mix the crab and crème fraiche together if using and mound in the center. Artfully arrange the cucumber around and serve immediately.
Note: Can be made a few hours ahead.
CHILLED HEIRLOOM TOMATO SOUP WITH GRILLED SHRIMP
Serves 6
Unfortunately, regular hot-house tomatoes don’t work in this recipe. Wait until summer heirloom tomatoes are in season and select the most flavorful, vine-ripened ones you can find. This is a great excuse to visit your local Farmer’s market. For variety I sometimes will separately add up to a cup or so of freshly juiced cucumber, sweet red bell pepper or carrot to the soup mixture. Also a drizzle of fresh herb oil in place of the olive oil would be a nice little garnish. Also note that I’ve brined the shrimp before grilling which adds lots of flavor and moisture.
4 pounds coarsely chopped ripe tomatoes
1/4 cup or so balsamic vinegar, preferably white (or to taste)
Kosher or sea salt and freshly ground white pepper
Grilled brined shrimp (recipe follows)
1 large avocado peeled and cut into 6 fans
Crème fraiche (recipe follows) or yogurt
Garnish: fruity extra virgin olive oil and sprigs of cilantro or mint
Puree the tomatoes in a food processor and force through a medium mesh strainer with a rubber spatula to catch all the seeds and skins. Season to your taste with the vinegar, salt and pepper. Cover and refrigerate until very cold.
To serve: Grill the shrimp until just done over medium hot coals (can be done ahead). Ladle soup into chilled soup bowls. Place 2 shrimp in the center and garnish with sliced avocado fans, a dollop of crème fraiche, a drizzle of olive oil and an herb sprig.
Grilled Brined Shrimp
For the brine:
1/3 cup each sea or kosher salt and brown sugar
1 quart water
For the marinade:
1/4 cup olive oil
2 teaspoons finely chopped or pressed garlic
1 tablespoon chopped parsley
1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes (or to taste)
2 tablespoons dry white wine
12 large (16 – 20 size) shrimp, peeled and deveined (save the shells!)
Prepare brine by stirring salt, sugar and water together until dissolved. Add shrimp and let sit for 30 minutes. Drain and rinse. Combine the marinade ingredients and toss to coat the shrimp. Grill shrimp on both sides over medium hot coals until they are just cooked through, about 4 minutes total.
Making Crème Fraiche:
Lots of recipes call for crème fraiche which is similar to sour cream but smoother and richer. In France, where it originates, its body comes from the natural bacteria in unpasteurized cream. In America however this is nearly impossible for us to get unless you milk your own animals so we can make a good approximation with the following simple recipe. Crème Fraiche is great for cooking because of its rich flavor and stability – – it won’t break when heated, unlike sour cream.
1 cup heavy cream, preferably natural and not “ultra” pasteurized or processed
2 tablespoons cultured buttermilk
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
Stir all together, cover and let sit at room temperature for 6 – 8 hours or until very thick. Refrigerate covered for up to 5 days.
GREEN GODDESS SOUP WITH CRAB
Serves 6 to 8 as a first or appetizer course (makes about 3 cups)
Green Goddess dressing was created in San Francisco in 1920 at the Palace Hotel in honor of the British actor George Arliss who was starring there in a play called The Green Goddess. This is a riff on that recipe. Because I’m in California I use Dungeness crab but use whichever crab is available to you. Also delicious with shrimp meat, cold or hot smoked salmon, bay scallops or cooked mussel meat.
1 medium cucumber, peeled, seeded, and roughly chopped
1 ripe medium avocado, peeled, pitted, and quartered
6 scallions, including about 1 inch of the green stem, roughly chopped (about 1 cup)
1/2 cup lightly packed Italian parsley leaves, roughly chopped
1 tablespoon chopped basil leaves
2 anchovies packed in oil, gently blotted with a paper towel
1-1/2 cups chicken stock
1/2 cup crème fraiche
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice, or to taste
Salt and drops of your favorite hot sauce to your taste
3/4-pound crabmeat, picked over for any shells
1 tablespoon chopped chives and extra virgin olive oil or basil oil (page xxx) for garnish
Place the cucumber, avocado, scallions, parsley, basil leaves, and anchovies into a food processor. Pulse till finally chopped, about 10 seconds. Add the chicken stock, crème fraiche, lemon juice, salt and pepper. Process for another 10 seconds or so or until the mixture is smooth and well blended.
Pour the soup into a large bowl, cover with plastic wrap, and chill for at least 2 hours. Correct taste with lemon, salt, hot sauce remembering that chilling mute’s flavor. When ready to serve, ladle into soup bowls or plates, garnish with a tablespoon or so of the crabmeat, and sprinkle with the minced chives and a drizzle of oil of your choice.
TOMATO AND WATERMELON GAZPACHO WITH CRAB
Serves 8
1 large serrano chile, preferably red
1 large poblano chile
4 cups seedless red watermelon chunks (1-1/2 pounds)
2 teaspoons poached or roasted garlic puree (see below)
2 pounds cored red heirloom tomatoes
2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
Salt to taste
2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice or to taste
1/4 cup crème fraîche
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 pound Dungeness crab, picked over to remove any shells
2 small Hass avocados, peeled and cut into 1/2-inch dice
Micro greens or mint sprigs
Roast the serrano and poblano over a gas flame until lightly charred all over. Cover with plastic and allow to steam for a few minutes then rub off as much skin as possible. Remove the stem and seeds from both. Add the serrano to a blender. Dice the poblano and set aside. Add the watermelon and garlic to the blender and puree; transfer to a bowl and refrigerate.
Bring a large saucepan of water to a boil and fill a bowl with ice water. Score the tomato bottoms with an X. Add the tomatoes to the boiling water and blanch for 10 seconds to loosen their skins. Transfer the tomatoes to the ice water to cool.
Peel the tomatoes and halve them crosswise. Working over a sieve set in a bowl, pry out the seeds. Press on the seeds to extract the juice, then discard them. Transfer the tomatoes and their juices to the blender and puree. Stir the tomato puree into the watermelon puree along with the vinegar and season to your taste with salt.
In a medium bowl, whisk the lemon juice, crème fraîche and olive oil together and season with salt. Fold in the crab, avocado and reserved poblano. Ladle the soup into bowls, mound the crab salad in the center, top with microgreens and serve.
To Roast Garlic: Slice off the top quarter or so of each garlic head to expose the cloves. Drizzle with a little olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Loosely but completely wrap each head in a piece of foil and roast in a preheated 400-degree oven or until garlic is very soft and lightly browned, about 45 minutes or so. To use simply squeeze the buttery soft garlic out of the head just like you’d do toothpaste.
To Poach garlic: Separate cloves but don’t peel. Place in a small saucepan and cover with at least ½ inch of cold water. Place on stove over high heat and bring to a boil. As soon as water boils, drain and repeat process one more time. Rinse to cool off cloves and now easily remove husk.
CHILLED HEIRLOOM TOMATO SOUP WITH SUMMER RELISH
Serves 6 – 8
Unfortunately, regular hothouse tomatoes don’t work in this recipe. Wait until you can get great heirloom tomatoes and select the most flavorful, vine-ripened ones you can find. I’d try to use tomatoes of the same color but if you want to be fancy, you could separately do reds and yellows and with two ladles simultaneously pour them into chilled soup plates to create a “yin – yang” effect. For variety I sometimes will add up to a cup or so of freshly juiced cucumber, sweet red bell pepper or carrot to the soup mixture.
4 pounds coarsely chopped ripe tomatoes
1/4 cup balsamic vinegar (or to taste)
Kosher salt and freshly ground white pepper
Summer Relish (recipe follows)
Garnish: Sliced avocado fans, yogurt or crème fraiche (recipe follows) and basil oil (recipe follows)
Using a food mill, puree the tomatoes — a food mill is preferred. In using the food mill, move from the coarsest to the finest blade, depending on the texture you desire. Discard the skins and seeds. If you don’t have a food mill you can also use a food processor to puree. Strain pureed tomatoes through a medium mesh strainer, pushing down on the solids with a rubber spatula to capture seeds and skin. Season to your taste with vinegar, salt and pepper. Cover and refrigerate until very cold.
To serve, ladle soup into chilled soup bowls. Place 1 or 2 tablespoons of the Summer Relish in the center and garnish with sliced avocado fans, a dollop of yogurt or crème fraiche and a drizzle of basil oil around.
Summer Relish
1 tablespoon chopped fresh basil
2 teaspoons chopped fresh mint
1/4 cup diced red onion
3 tablespoons diced red bell pepper
1/4 cup seeded and diced cucumber (lemon cucumber preferred)
2 teaspoons extra virgin olive oil
Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
In a bowl gently combine the relish ingredients. Correct the seasoning with salt and pepper.
Basil oil
Any fresh leafy herb or combination can be used such as mint, chives, cilantro, parsley, shiso, etc.
2 cloves garlic, peeled
3 cups packed herbs; large stems discarded
2 cups or so cups olive or canola oil
Sea salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
Add garlic to a deep saucepan with lightly salted boiling water and boil for 1 minute. Add herbs and stir until they turn a bright green (about 5 seconds).
Drain and plunge immediately into ice water to stop the cooking and set the color. This blanching step inactivates the enzymes which causes the herb to turn brown and develop an oxidized flavor.
Squeeze herbs as dry as you can and add to a blender along with garlic and enough
oil to cover by at least 2 inches. Puree till smooth. Strain thru a fine mesh strainer or cheese cloth. I let it drain slowly for an hour or so. Oil should be a very bright green and fragrant. Season with salt and pepper to taste and store covered in refrigerator for up to 3 weeks.
CHILLED AVOCADO SOUP
Serves 6
3 large ripe avocados; peeled, pitted and chopped
1/4 cup fresh lime or lemon juice
2 teaspoons grated lime or lemon zest
4 cups or so rich corn or chicken stock
1/2 cup plain yogurt
2 teaspoons minced garlic
1 tablespoon fresh ginger juice (crushed in a garlic press)
1 teaspoon minced serrano chile or drops of bottled hot sauce to taste
3 tablespoons fresh chopped cilantro or 2 tablespoons chopped mint
Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
Garnish: Finely diced, seeded ripe tomato and cucumber, nori strips and tobiko, if desired.
Add ingredients to a food processor or blender (in batches if necessary) and puree until smooth. Thin to desired consistency with additional stock. Chill for an hour or two to allow flavors to blend and serve in chilled bowls with suggested garnishes.
CHILLED GREEN PEA SOUP WITH PURSLANE
Serves 4
This is a beautifully green soup in which you can make all kinds of substitutions such as broccoli for some or all of the peas, watercress or spinach for some or all of the romaine and basil, dill or tarragon for some or all of the mint
3 tablespoons olive oil, divided
1/2 cup chopped green onions including green tops
2 teaspoons chopped garlic
3 cups fresh or thawed frozen sweet peas (about 12 ounces)
2 cups defatted chicken or shellfish stock
1-1/2 packed cups finely chopped romaine or other green lettuce
3 tablespoons chopped fresh mint
2/3 cup buttermilk, preferably labeled “Bulgarian” style
Sea Salt
Drops of lemon juice and your favorite hot sauce, to taste
1 cup tender puslane leaves and stems
1/4 cup or so crème fraîche
Heat 2 tablespoons oil in a deep saucepan, add the green onions and garlic and sauté over moderate heat until softened but not brown, about 3 minutes. Add the peas and stock and bring to a simmer. Cook until peas are cooked through and tender. Remove from heat to cool for a few minutes. Add mixture to a blender and puree. Add romaine and mint and puree again until smooth. Add buttermilk and whiz again till combined. Season to your taste with salt, drops of lemon juice and hot pepper sauce. Strain through a medium mesh strainer and chill. Taste again for seasoning since chilling mutes flavor a bit.
To serve: Toss the purslane with the remaining tablespoon of olive oil and season with a little salt. Ladle soup into flat soup plates and top with purslane and squiggles of crème fraîche. Soup can be made up to a day ahead and stored covered in the refrigerator.
Note: If using fresh English peas you may want to add a little sugar depending on their maturity.
John Ash © 2023