Cream-Free Soups

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Cream-Free Soups

Four fresh variations on the classic French potage

BY Susan Hermann Loomis and Fiona Kennedy
PHOTOGRAPHY Richard Jung

In many homes in France, particularly in the countryside, the evening meal starts with a potage, a blended soup made with lightly seasoned vegetables. So named because the ingredients come from the vegetable garden, or potager, these simple soups get their rich, velvety texture from puréed veggies rather than cream. What’s more, a potage comes together quickly, fills you up without fat and a lot of calories, and tastes even better reheated the next day. (Take-along lunch, anyone?) The following recipes offer an easy introduction to the French favorite and show you how a few flavorful seasonings, such as sherry, curry powder, and miso paste, can turn a simple vegetable soup into something spectacular.

January 2009 p.42

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Curried Cauliflower Soup

This soup’s secret ingredient—an apple—lends a touch of tangy sweetness that complements the curry’s spice. Letting the soup cool 20 minutes before blending helps deepen the flavors.

Sherried Kabocha Soup with Spiced Pepitas

Not Yet Rated

If kabocha squash is unavailable, any other type of winter squash (butternut, acorn, etc.) will work in this recipe, though it may change the texture due to varying moisture content. To make up for these differences, adjust the water you add in the last step.

Carrot-Miso Soup with Wasabi Peas

Not Yet Rated

Instead of calling for vegetable broth, we’ve seasoned the liquid in this soup with kombu, a seaweed commonly used in Japanese soup stocks. For extra Asian flair, save the kombu used to season the soup, cut it into thin strips, and sprinkle it on top of each serving

Cream of Turnip Soup

Not Yet Rated

This comforting soup is so subtly flavored that even turnip-haters like it. Baby turnips have a milder taste, but the recipe works just as well with regular turnips. Thinly sliced celery leaves mimic lovage, an herb often used in France to season turnip dishes.