You don’t require a substantial amount of cream to create a Creamy Zucchini Soup because the natural consistency of cooked zucchini seamlessly transforms it into a rich and velvety soup. This delightful bowl of warmth not only pleases your taste buds but also boasts a modest calorie count of just 220 per generous serving, or a mere 98 calories if you opt to omit the cream!
Now, let’s delve into the realm of SOUP.
To be more precise, let’s explore Creamy Zucchini Soup—a HEALTHY rendition. It’s worth mentioning that I didn’t intentionally set out to create a healthy version; this is simply how I prepare Cream of Zucchini Soup. Truth be told, a generous dollop of cream is stirred into the soup at the final stage, a luxury you can indulge in without guilt, given that even with the cream, each serving clocks in at a modest 220 calories—a portion that fills your bowl to the brim.
And in the absence of cream, the calorie count drops to a mere 98 calories per serving. Remarkable, isn’t it? And while I’m an advocate for adding a touch of cream (or butter!) to the mix, even without it, this soup remains exceptionally flavorful. Now, let’s turn our attention to the star of this recipe: the zucchini. A whopping 1 kg (2 lb) of it, to be precise. This recipe provides an excellent opportunity to make good use of zucchini, which tends to be readily available year-round and often budget-friendly.
Once the zucchinis are cooked until tender, they transform into a silky, luscious, and thick soup—no need for a roux, potatoes, cornflour, or any thickeners. The cream introduced at the end isn’t intended for thickening; it’s there to enhance the flavor.
Take a moment to appreciate its luxurious thickness. Here I am extolling the virtues of this healthy soup, and then I share a photo of myself dipping a butter-slathered piece of toast into it with my petite, chipolata-sausage-like fingers. (By the way, speaking of chipolatas, they would make a fantastic addition to the Sausage Pasta recipe I shared earlier this week!)
This recipe yields a rather substantial pot of soup, comfortably serving 5 or satisfying 4 with hearty appetites. I always prepare a sizable batch because a) it freezes beautifully, and b) it’s my go-to recipe when I stumble upon a stash of budget-friendly zucchinis. Just last week, I snagged 1 kg (2 lb) for a mere $1.99 at Harris Farms and had a basic homemade vegetable broth from leftover scraps. To be perfectly honest, this entire recipe probably cost me a mere $4 to put together.
