Avocado Soup

This is a delightful Avocado Soup that makes for a light, refreshing meal.

I've found that it tastes best made with vegetable stock (as opposed to chicken stock) so I'll include instructions on how to whip up some homemade veggie stock if you want to give it a whirl.

Keep in mind that the veggie stock is flexible.  Don't worry about using the exact ingredients I'm using, you can simply use what veggies you have on hand and most likely you'll still end up with a stock that is far superior to anything you can buy at the store.

A good starting point for a gallon of stock is two pounds of mirepoix (1 pound onions, 1/2 pound carrots, 1/2 pound celery).

This will roughly translate into 2 onions, 3 medium carrots and 3-4 stalks of celery, but don't sweat weighing out the veggies as your stock isn't concerned about appearances.

Chopping these up into smaller chunks will help expose more of the veggies to the simmering water.

Start by giving these a sweat in some oil using a gallon-sized pot.

Once the veggies are softened you can add the aromatics.

We're adding 1/2 bunch parsley, bay leaves, and about 10-15 peppercorns (approx. 1/4 teaspoon), along with cold water filled to the rim.

Use high heat to bring this to a boil and then reduce heat to a simmer.

An hour later it'll look something like this:

And your kitchen will smell like a dream!

Letting it simmer for longer will concentrate the flavor, but of course it depends on how hungry you are!    I simmered this batch for an hour and that is enough to give this soup a strong base to work with.

Strain the stock but you can definitely keep the veggies around to munch on.

You're left with close to a gallon of light, vibrant freshly made vegetable stock.  Easy right?

This stock freezes well, so feel free to tuck some away for future use.   You'll need 5 cups of it to make the Avocado Soup.

For the soup, start by cooking 1/2 onion, 1/4 jalapeno, and a single garlic clove in a dollop of oil.

You can chop them roughly as all of this is going into the blender eventually.

And note that 1/4 jalapeno gives the soup just a hint of heat, but keep the rest of the jalapeno on hand in case you want a more fiery version.

Once the onion is softened and just starting to brown (5-8 minutes), add the mixture to a blender along with:

5 cups of your awesome stock
15-20 sprigs of cilantro
1/2 teaspoon salt
freshly cracked black pepper
juice of 1 lime

I like to combine this before adding the avocados so give it a good whirl.

Once combined, add the flesh of 2 avocados and pulse blend (I leave the avocados a bit chunky).

And now take a taste, but don't eat it all!

I added another 1/4 teaspoon of salt (so that is 3/4 teaspoon total) and another healthy squeeze of lime.

If all went according to plan you've got a light, vibrant soup that will work wonders on not-so-sunny days.

So good!

This is typically served lukewarm or chilled.  And since your batch of stock is still warm you can chow down on this right out of the blender.

There are loads of options for final garnish but I definitely recommend a final burst of acidity.  Lime juice or hot sauce are good choices (or both!), and you can't go wrong with some Crema and freshly cracked black pepper.

Store the leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge.  Give it a try the next day and you'll know if you prefer this Avocado Soup warm or chilled.

I like the lukewarm version best, maybe because it's a reminder of that versatile stock that just made its way into the kitchen.  Well done!

Okay, next up we'll take a look at making a batch of Homemade Chicken Stock.  Click the 'Mark Complete' button down below to continue.