Name: Cream of Cucumber Soup with Herbs
Yield: Serves 6 as a first course
Ingredients: 2 to 2½ pounds cucumbers; 1 bunch scallions (green onions); ¼ cup tightly packed dill leaves, plus some for garnish, or ½ cup tightly packed sliced basil leaves, plus some for garnish; ¼ cup quick-cooking farina (Cream of Wheat); 1 cup dry white wine; 2 teaspoons kosher salt (omit if broth is salted); 1 tablespoon grapeseed or other mild vegetable oil; 3 cups vegetable broth; 1 cup water; White pepper; About ¾ cup light cream or half-and-half

Preparation info

Serves
6
as a first course

Difficulty
Medium

Appears in

Vegetables from Amaranth to Zucchini

By Elizabeth Schneider

Published 2001

About

This soup was inspired by Julia Child’s Potage aux Concombres, from The French Chef Cookbook, which taught me the pleasures of cooked cucumber soup. I’ve substituted vegetable broth, wine, and water for chicken stock; fresh herbs for dried; scallions for shallots; oil for butter; and light cream for sour cream—but the recipe is much the same, and just dandy. The use of farina (Cream of Wheat) as thickener instead of the traditional potatoes means a fresher cucumber taste.

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