Chilled almond-garlic soup

Summer is a perfect time to try this chilled almond-garlic soup. Made with only three main ingredients, almonds, garlic and bread, it turns into a creamy, healthy and delicious dish. It makes a wonderful summer lunch or dinner, as well as a lovely starter.

Chilled almond-garlic soup is one of the famous Spanish summer soups, also called “white gazpacho”. It originates from one of the hottest parts of Europe, southern Spain, Andalusia to be exact. Even though almonds are the main ingredient, in Spain, it is called “ajo blanco”, white garlic soup.

I love chilled soups. In fact, they are easy and fast to make. More, they are healthy, cooling and extremely delicious. Consequently, they are a perfect summer dish to enjoy either for lunch or dinner at home or to go. For more chilled soup ideas, don’t forget to check these recipes out: cucumber gazpacho, a fruity raspberry detox soup or a delicious avocado-yogurt soup.

Besides from magazines and cookbooks, the most inspiration I get is from Twitter and Pinterest. Sometimes the recipes are just so amazing, that I have to do a remake. Maybe with some small adjustments of mine. Wink. And so, thanks to my Twitter friend June d’Arville, I discovered and had the pleasure to try this lovely and delicious summer soup.

The three main ingredients are almonds, garlic and bread. Firstly, almonds give a nice white colour and a lovely flavour to the soup, secondly, bread makes it thick and thirdly, garlic spices it up. As usual, I made my adjustments. In fact, I added more almonds, more garlic and I used whole wheat bread with line and sunflower seeds. I love garlic. Therefore, I added 3 cloves, so we could really taste it. Yummy.

Moreover, peeled almonds or shaved ones are the best for this soup. Not only are they white and taste delicious, but they are also very healthy. In other words, they are rich in fiber, healthy fats, protein, vitamin E and magnesium. Almonds are also a great snack between the meals or as a smoothie or yogurt topping. Eating 20 almonds a day can reduce hunger, lower the blood sugar, blood pressure and make your skin look beautiful.

Regarding bread, usually, stale bread is used to make this soup. The reason, I used whole wheat bread, a couple of days old, is that we don’t buy any white bread and we also don’t manage to get any stale bread. Wink. Anyway, use any stale bread you like most, but skip the fresh soft white bread. Most important, remember to soak it in order to soften the crust. This applies especially for sourdough bread with a robust crust.

Additionally, the original recipe suggests pouring it through a wire sieve. Guess what? I skipped that step. I like soups with a bit of texture. In fact, I even added more almonds as a topping. There’s always space for some crunch. Wink. Don’t you think?

A quick tip from me; in order to enjoy the chilled almond-garlic soup at its best, make it already in the morning. As a result, until lunch, it will get perfectly chilled and the creaminess will really pop out.

Also, if you want more Spanish delights after this one, you have to check these: mouth-melting bacon-wrapped dates, charred Padron peppers, stunning spicy mussels with chorizo sausage or the delicious crema Catalana (first months of my food blog, photos need a little update).

Ingredients for two portions of chilled almond-garlic soup:

• 100 g stale bread (or fresh but with a robust texture)
• 160 g peeled or shaved almonds
• 2-3 garlic cloves (chopped)
• 50 ml of olive oil
• 200-250 ml cold water
• a handful of white grapes
• salt and pepper
• basil (optional)

First, cut the stale bread into bigger chunks. If you don’t have stale bread, pick a fresh one, but with harder crust, such as sourdough bread. Then, put the bread in a bowl and add some cold water (enough to cover it). Let it soak for 5 minutes or until the crust gets tender.

Furthermore, put half of the almonds into a food processor, add the bread (after you squeezed out all of the excess water) and the roughly chopped garlic and top with the rest of almonds. Before blending, drizzle some olive oil and season with some salt. Then, pulse and slowly pour in the water for 1 minute or until lovely and thick.

If you still feel that it is too thick, simply add another splash of cold water. At this point, you should have a thick white pulp consistency. Adjust the seasoning if necessary. Now, to get it really smooth, you can stir it through a wire sieve or mesh. On the other hand, for more texture, you can leave it just as it is.

Before serving, you have to chill it completely. Therefore, place it in the fridge for at least 2 hours.

Finally, divide the chilled almond-garlic soup between two bowls. To make it even more authentic, add some fresh grapes, sprinkle with some more almonds and finish with a drizzle of olive oil and a leaf of fresh basil.

Enjoy!

PS

If you like the recipe, if you make the recipe or if you have any new ideas how to improve or change it, let me know in the comments section below or alternatively share your photos and reactions with me on Instagram (@Passionspoon), Facebook or Twitter (@PassionSpoon1). Simply use the hashtag #passionspoonrecipes in your posts. I would love to see them! (wink)