Cream of Zucchini Soup

I am a huge fan of creamed soups.  Huge.  In fact, as a kid my favorite thing to eat was a can of Campbell’s Cream of Chicken soup, and please don't stir it too much because I like the lumps.  Granted I’ve come a long way since then, but my tastes haven’t changed so much that I’d forget my roots.  They have changed though, to include a love for Zucchini, both raw and cooked.  It seemed only natural then, that my two favorite things should marry into a creamy, soupy goodness. The name of this soup is kind of misnomer though, because it doesn't actually contain cream.

I topped it with a bit of Parmesan cheese. It would have been really great with some crusty buttered bread, but I finished off my bread with the barley soup a few days earlier. At less than 100 calories a cup, and fat free it really doesn’t get too much better than that. This recipe makes about 7 one-cup servings.

4 cups unpeeled zucchini squash, cut into chunks

4 cups chicken broth

1-2 cups of red potatoes, cut into medium cubes

1 medium onion, quartered

2 cloves fresh garlic, minced

1 teaspoon dried thyme

1/2 teaspoon freshly grated black pepper

1/2 to 1 teaspoon kosher salt, according to your taste

Place all ingredients together in a large pot, cover and bring to a low boil. Continue to cook, covered at a very low boil for 20 minutes, or until soft.

When everything is soft, remove from heat, add sour cream, and blend using an immersion blender.  If you don’t have an immersion blender, you can also place the soup in batches in a blender or food processor. Blend until smooth.