Cold corn soup a hot-weather treat
Delicious dish is inspired by Spanish gazpacho
Simple and delicious straight out of the garden, abundant corn on the cob is one of the great things about summer. You boil it up, spread on a little butter, dig in and thank your lucky stars. But even perfection gets boring after a while. This cold, refreshing soup is a way to have your corn and spoon it, too.
I was inspired by the classic Spanish gazpacho, but swapped out the tomato broth for corn liquid. Of course, any puréed vegetable will thicken a soup, but corn contains starch, which adds a seductive creaminess. (It’s cornstarch in a box that’s used to thicken Chinese dishes.)
The supporting ingredients are the usual gazpacho players — tomatoes, cucumbers, peppers and garlic — supplemented by a lineup of some Mexican cousins: chile, lime juice and garlic croutons flavoured with chili powder. You can deepen the recipe’s Mexican connection by topping it off with diced avocado and chopped cilantro. (I used basil instead of cilantro because I can’t resist the combo of basil and corn.)
A bowl of this cold corn soup is the perfect starter for a Canada Day party, but simply adding some protein — boiled shrimp, say, or shredded rotisserie chicken — will turn it into the persuasive main course of any summer meal.
This dish is pretty quick to make, but you can make it even more quickly by losing the garlic croutons in favour of some crushed tortilla chips. And, happily, it improves in flavour if you prepare it a few hours — or a few days — ahead of time. Doing so in anticipation of Canada Day would allow you to check it off your list well before the fireworks begin.
Corn Gazpacho with Garlic Croutons
Start to finish: 2 hours 55 minutes Makes: Four servings For the soup: 4 cups fresh corn kernels 1 1/2 cups coarsely chopped peeled English cucumber plus 1 cup diced peeled English cucumber 1 garlic clove, smashed and peeled 1/4 cup lime juice 2 Tbsp vegetable oil, preferably grapeseed 1/2 tsp kosher salt 1 cup halved or quartered cherry tomatoes 1 cup diced red bell pepper 1 Tbsp minced serrano chile with the seeds Shredded fresh basil for garnish
For the croutons:
2 Tbsp vegetable oil, preferably grapeseed 1 tsp minced garlic 1/2 tsp chile powder 1/8 tsp kosher salt 3 oz (about 3 slices) firm white bread, crusts removed and cut into 1/2-inch dice (you should have about 2 cups) Bring a medium saucepan of water to a boil, add the corn and boil for one minute. Drain the corn into a colander and run cold water over it to cool it down. Set aside 1 cup of the kernels and in a blender combine the remaining corn kernels, the coarsely chopped cucumber, garlic, lime juice, oil and salt and purée until very smooth.
Transfer the purée to a bowl and stir in the remaining corn kernels, diced cucumber, tomatoes, red bell pepper and chile. Taste and adjust seasoning and chill for at least two hours and up to two
days ahead before serving.
For the croutons, preheat the oven to 300 F. In a bowl, combine the oil, garlic, chili powder and salt, add the bread cubes and toss well. Spread the croutons on a parchment-lined rimmed sheet pan and bake them on the middle shelf of the oven for 15 to 20 minutes, or until the bread squares are crisp and beginning to brown. Let cool.
To serve, divide the soup among four bowls and top each portion with the croutons and some shredded basil.
Sara Moulton is host of public television’s Sara’s Weeknight Meals.