Creamy Cucumber Soup includes avocado, yogurt, parsley, onion, garlic and lemon juice in addition to several cups of cucumbers.
                                 Mark Guydish | Times Leader

Creamy Cucumber Soup includes avocado, yogurt, parsley, onion, garlic and lemon juice in addition to several cups of cucumbers.

Mark Guydish | Times Leader

Creamy cucumber concoction can be served warm or cold

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<p>Mary Therese Biebel</p>
                                <p>Times Leader Test Kitchen</p>

Mary Therese Biebel

Times Leader Test Kitchen

“I thought you could make something out of this,” page designer Lyndsay Bartos said on Monday as she greeted me with a gift of two large green cucumbers.

Aha! A challenge!

My first thought was cucumber salad — and I probably would have headed in that direction, except that Mark had presented a cucumber salad in his Times Leader test kitchen column not even a week earlier.

Figuring it would be better to make something different for my turn in the test kitchen, I started to research summery soups that could be served cold.

And, thanks to a very easy recipe I found at eatingwell.com, by Tuesday afternoon I was serving Creamy Cucumber Soup and collecting comments from the newsroom taste testers:

“It tastes really good,” page designer Toni Pennello said. “I’ve never had cold soup before, but I knew gazpacho was a thing. It’s a little weird to get used to. I feel like I’m eating tzatziki sauce.”

Indeed, tzatziki sauce, a condiment that often accompanies such Mediterranean fare as tabbouleh or a gyro, likely would contain some of the same ingredients as this soup —namely cucumbers, yogurt, olive oil, garlic and herbs. But it probably wouldn’t have the avocado or the vegetable broth.

“It’s very refreshing. I like it a lot,” said reporter Kevin Carroll, noting he is a fan of cucumbers. He also couldn’t remember ever before eating soup that was designed to be served cold.

“There aren’t many cold soups out there,” columnist Bill O’Boyle said. “But that’s a good one. I enjoyed it, for something different.”

Truth be told, this recipe specified the cucumber soup could be served warm or cold. Mark and I tried it warm, at home, and he thought that brought out a certain “savory, comfort-food” aspect to the soup. I liked it both ways but decided to chill it for the newsroom because the taste testers usually appreciate cool food in the summer.

“You do seem to like these summery foods,” news editor Roger DuPuis said, giving the soup a thumbs up.

“I’m trying to make vegetables more palatable,” I said.

“You succeed,” he said.

Then we exchanged a glance and realized we sounded as if neither of us considers vegetables palatable. But we both like them — a lot.

I meant I was trying to make vegetables palatable for other folks who might be shy about trying them.

“My way of eating was more closed off before,” Kevin said helpfully. “I never would have tried some of these things if you didn’t bring them in.”

Outside of the newsroom I managed to give a sample of soup to two long-time veggie fans — my mom and my friend Valerie. “It’s so delicious,” my mom said, while Valerie approvingly mentioned some health benefits of cucumbers, including that they help regulate blood sugar.

“I’ve heard that diabetics should eat them everyday,” Valerie said.

Perhaps ironically, the only person who tried the soup and didn’t like it was Lyndsay, who had given me the cucumbers in the first place.

“Mary Therese, I knew I wasn’t going to like it,” she said. “But I’m glad I tried it, and I’m glad you used the cucumbers. I’m just not a cucumber person.”

Well, gentle readers, if you ARE cucumber people, enjoy this recipe from eatingwell.com/.

CREAMY CUCUMBER SOUP

1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 small onion, diced

1 tablespoon lemon juice

4 cups peeled, seeded and thinly sliced cucumbers, divided

1 1/2 cups vegetable broth, or reduced-sodium chicken broth

½ teaspoon salt

¼ teaspoon freshly ground pepper

Pinch of cayenne pepper

1 avocado, diced

¼ cup chopped fresh parsley, plus more for garnish

½ cup low-fat plain yogurt

Step 1

Heat oil in a large saucepan over medium-high heat. Add garlic and onion; cook, stirring occasionally, until tender, 1 to 4 minutes. Add lemon juice and cook for 1 minute. Add 3 3/4 cups cucumber slices, broth, salt, pepper and cayenne; bring to a simmer. Reduce heat and cook at a gentle simmer until the cucumbers are soft, 6 to 8 minutes.

Step 2

Transfer the soup to a blender. Add avocado and parsley; blend on low speed until smooth. (Use caution when pureeing hot liquids.) Pour into a serving bowl and stir in yogurt. Chop the remaining 1/4 cup cucumber slices. Serve the soup warm or refrigerate and serve it chilled. Just before serving, garnish with the chopped cucumber and more chopped parsley, if desired.