Honeydew Soup
James Beard Foundation, NYC
"Here's a recipe for a delicious, quick summertime fruit soup that's light and refreshing, but somehow still very satisfying. The same technique can be used with any ripe, fleshy melon, including cantaloupes and watermelon, or sweet, fleshy fruit, such as peaches or nectarines."
–Mitchell Davis
Ingredients
- 2 pounds very ripe honeydew melon, flesh only (from 3-pound melon), cut into cubes (2 to 3 cups)
- Juice of 1 lime (2 tablespoons)
- 2 teaspoons brandy
- 1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 tablespoon chopped fresh mint
- Pinch of salt
- 1 to 2 tablespoons honey, maple syrup, corn syrup, simple sugar syrup, or superfine sugar, to taste (optional)
Method
Place the honeydew in a blender or food processor fitted with a metal chopping blade along with 3/4 cup water, the lime juice, brandy, vanilla, mint, and salt. Purée using on/off pulses, until smooth, and then let the blender run for a minute or so to produce a light, frothy soup. If the melon isn't very sweet, adjust the sweetness with honey. Serve in chilled bowls.
Variations:
Substitute cantaloupe for the honeydew and lemon or orange juice for the lime juice.
Watermelon Soup:
Subsitute 2 pounds ripe peaches or nectarines, peeled, pitted, and cut into cubes, for the honeydew. Becuase of the denser texture of the fruit, you may need an additional tablespoon or two of water to acheive a nice liquid consistency.
Yield
4 or 5 servings
