Vichyssoise

On a hot August day, what could be more refreshing than a nice bowl of…

soup?

Yah, youbetcha!

When the soup is ice cold and creamy and so very, very tasty Vichyssoise.

Otherwise known as “cold potato soup.”

Some folk love it, some hate it, but we are

most certainly in the “love it” category.

I have been enjoying a version of this since I was a kid – it was one of my Aunt Buzz’s standby summer luncheon recipes – and, even though I lost Aunt Buzz’s original recipe, I have pieced together this option which brings me back to summer afternoons in the second house down from the top of the mountain.

INGREDIENTS
•1 can cream of potato soup
•1 can chicken broth
•8-16 oz sour cream
•1/4 cup heavy cream
•1 tsp dried chives
•1 tsp garlic powder
•1/4 tsp white pepper

Combine all in a blender and blend until well mixed and smooth.

Stash in the fridge for at least a few hours or overnight before serving.

Note: this soup is not gluten-free, due to the make-up of the canned potato soup, but, if you really want to try this, and really need it to be gluten-free, may I suggest boiling a couple of potatoes in cream until soft, then mashing well, stirring in a bit of the cooking cream if needed; then cool and add one additional cup of sour cream to the blender.

Starting with a can of condensed soup, and using eight ounces of sour cream, I got a bit more than a quart of soup, a perfect amount for sharing.

To serve, ideally, pour into chilled bowls, dust with additional chives, and enjoy quickly. One cool option is to serve it in small cocktail glasses and pass to folk as soup shooters.

Note: thanks to an old friend, I am now in possession of my Aunt Buzz’s actual recipe, and plan on trying it out in the next few weeks to see which I prefer. This version is a bit lighter and lower in sodium, but hers was just so darned good.