Avocado Chipotle Bisque: A Unique and Easy Raw Soup for Summer and Souper (Soup, Salad & Sammie) Sundays

You might look at this Avocado Chipotle Bisque and think, "Deb, did you make soup or guacamole?" And truth be told this cold, raw soup does have a few similarities to the classic chip dip, but it works really well as a soup for a hot summer's day or evening. It comes from Vegetarian Times magazine, one of my favorite sources for recipes, and goes together in a snap. The ingredients make for a colorful, flavorful and quite unique soup.

This recipe was first published in the July 2009 magazine and also appears in the Vegetarian Times Presents: Farmers' Market Cookbook issue and can be found online here.

Vegetarian Times says, "The key to this recipe is using the ripest, creamiest Hass avocados you can find. Avocados are high in vitamins C and E and monounsaturated fats that have been shown to help lower cholesterol. To reduce the sodium content, omit the miso paste and simply season the soup with just a hint of sea salt. The bisque will keep for one day in the fridge."


Avocado Chipotle Bisque

Vegetarian Times, July 2009
(Serves 4)

30 minutes or less

2 medium avocados, diced (2 cups)
1 Tbs olive oil, hemp oil, or avocado oil
1/4 cup lime juice
2 Tbs. white miso paste
1 1/2 tsp. minced fresh rosemary or
2/3 tsp. dried rosemary
1/2 tsp. chipotle powder

Topping:
1/2 cup diced cherry tomatoes
1/2 cup diced orange or yellow bell pepper

Place all ingredients and 3 & 1/2 cups water in blender or food processor, and purée until smooth.

Divide Bisque among 4 bowls, and top each serving with 2 Tbs. diced tomatoes and 2 Tbs. diced bell pepper.

Nutritional Information: Per 1-cup serving: Calories: 180, Protein: 3g, Total fat: 15g, Saturated fat: 2g, Carbs: 13g, Cholesterol: mg, Sodium: 245mg, Fiber: 6g, Sugars: 4g

Notes/Results: Really tasty, thick and creamy. This is one of those soups that I thought looking at the unusual combination of ingredients, (avocado, miso paste, chipotle powder and rosemary), would either be really good or really not. Luckily it all actually works together. You taste the avocado and the kick of the chipotle--I added a bit extra but the miso and rosemary just add an interesting depth of flavor rather than tasting them specifically in the soup. The one thing I had to change was adding more liquid to process it and make it more soup-like than guacamole-ish--I used a combination of extra lime juice, a bit more olive oil and water until I had it the consistency I wanted, still thick but more "spoonable." I also chilled it covered for an hour or two in the fridge--I need my cold soups cold. I did end up using the Haas avocados because the local avocados here are just not quite creamy enough, but the lime juice, bell pepper, and tomatoes are all local, as is the rosemary, picked from my lanai herb garden.

This soup is very rich and satisfying so serve it in smaller amounts. It would be a good starter for a summer meal or paired with a crunchy salad. I also recommend serving it with corn chips for the crunchy texture. I just made a quick batch using some white corn tortillas, a bit of olive oil sprayed on and a mixture of cumin, chipotle powder and a little sea salt spread on top and baked about 10 minutes in a 350 F. oven until crisp. An unusual soup, quick and easy that I would make again.

Let's visit the Souper Sunday kitchen and see who is here this week:

I love that Reeni at Cinnamon Spice & Everything Nice and I were on the same page last weekend with cold fruit dessert soups containing cantaloupe. Her version is this gorgeous Cantaloupe and Coconut Milk Dessert Soup. Reeni says, "A mildly sweet and refreshing recipe for cold Cantaloupe and Coconut Milk Soup. It's sweetened with honey and warmly spiced with cinnamon, ginger and basil. It can be eaten as an appetizer or for dessert. And there are so many elegant, pretty ways you can serve it: in a bowl, a shot glass, as a shooter or in a parfait or wine/martini glass. If you had told me a few years ago that I'd not only be eating but loving fruit soup I would of vehemently denied it. Fruit soup sounds wrong. I never understood it's appeal. Until now. I'm a convert. I adore it!"

Tigerfish from Tezcape-An Escape to Food is here with a simple, balanced Coconut Chicken Soup and says,"The Chinese believe that in a coconut - the coconut water is "cooling" (yin) while the coconut flesh is "heaty" (yang). Coconut water is a good natural electrolyte to replenish lost moisture and minerals. A simple coconut chicken soup can be so easy with just coconut and chicken as the ingredients. And the outcome can be surprisingly tasty. The refreshing coconut water is subtly sweet and the chicken balances it up with savory deliciousness."

A big Souper Sunday welcome to Fajeeda from Faji's Hot Pot, joining us for the first time all the way from the United Arab Emirates. Fajeeda has a healthy Vegetable Soup to share and she says, "Soups are something I make for dinner on a lazy day……….but in winters soups will be there most of the days for dinner…………its so good to have a hot soup in winters........... so lets have a soup for today………" Nice to have you with us this week Fajeeda!

The lovely Janet from Taste Space is back this week with a colorful Summer Vegetable Pasta Salad with Lemon Basil Almond Pesto. Janet says, "So now that I made pesto, I had to figure out what to do with it. Pesto works well with a pasta salad, so I made a tasty pasta salad that used the summer’s bounty of vegetables. The unifying taste comes from the pesto and since I used a nice, light lemony pesto, with a red of red wine vinegar, it was a lovely summer salad indeed. My dad commented that he wished it had more pasta, compared to vegetables, so proceed with a ratio you prefer."

Reshmi from A Feast to the Eyes and Stomach made an exotic salad from Turkey this week and says, "Kisir is a traditional Turkish Salad/Starter/Snack made from bulgur, parsley and tomato paste. For kisir, a finely grounded bulgur is used, unlike the coarse bulgur used for Bulgur pilav, couscous is sometimes used instead. This could also be used as a filling for Burger sandwiches. Cut open a bread, stuff the filling, add sliced onions, tomatoes, cucumber and ketchup /mayonnaise. An ideal Snack for picnics!"

Another new face to welcome is Swathi from Zesty South Indian Kitchen who made a Potato Salad and Sun Dried Tomato. Swathi says, "I decided to make potato salad with feta cheese, sun dried tomato, dill, Parsley with a Greek twist in their look and taste. I don’t want to use mayonnaise in the salad; I know they make salad rich and creamy. I wanted a healthier version. I made a marinade with lemon juice, olive oil, black pepper, and garlic and crushed red chilies. They taste great on first day. Next day they taste even better. It is simple recipe easy to put it. My hubby has given the verdict that it is great." Welcome Swathi!

Burger-loving Kim from Stirring the Pot tried Bobby Flay's Crunchburger this week and says, "The Crunchburger is Bobby's signature burger. I can see why. The burger is topped with a potato chips and a horseradish mustard mayo (Bobby must know I love mustard)! Making the Crunchburger is as simple as whipping up a quick mustard sauce and frying up some burgers. I really loved the addition of the crunchy chips topping the burger and I especially loved the zippy tang of the Horseradish Mustard Mayo." (Read Kim's cute Bobby Flay story at her blog!)

Joanne from Eats Well With Others also tried one of Bobby's burgers, his Turkey Burgers Filled with Brie and Granny Smith Apples. She also served them homemade pretzel rolls and says about said rolls, "I have placed them on a pedestal. Built a shrine. It's right next to the shrine I built for brie-stuffed turkey burgers. Which have also managed to blow my mind this week. Burger Rating: 4/4 stars. Although I would say this burger is kind of cheating the system. It is stuffed with brie. Did I mention that? Enough said." OK-Yum!

A great group of dishes this week! Thanks to all who joined in and welcome to our new faces. If you have a soup, salad or sandwich that you would like to share, just click on the Souper Sundays link on the side bar for all of the details.

Have a wonderful week!