Cashew Soup

Some soups are savory and some are sweet. Here are two soups that each have their own special zing, one from curry and one from bourbon. We continue our fascination with nut soups by offering:

CASHEW and PINEAPPLE SOUP 1 oz. salted butter 1 red onion, finely chopped 1 cup pineapple pieces, drained 2 garlic cloves, halved 5 oz. cashew nuts, crushed 4 potatoes, peeled and diced 2 cups vegetable bouillon 1/2 cup Bourbon 5 fl.oz. half and half 1 tbsp. cornstarch 2 tsp. water 1 tsp. salt 1 tsp. black pepper parsley sprigs to garnish

Fry onion and garlic in butter until softened, about 3 minutes. Put crushed cashew nuts and onion mixture in a blender. Blend until smooth. Put cashew mixture into a deep pan. Add pineapple pieces, potatoes, vegetable bouillon, Bourbon, cream, salt and black pepper. Bring to a boil and cook for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Meanwhile, combine cornstarch and water until smooth. Add cornstarch mixture to soup. Stir constantly until thickened. Serve hot with garlic bread and garnished with parsley sprigs

CURRIED CASHEW SOUP
1 1/2 tablespoons canola oil
2 large onions, chopped
3-4 cloves garlic, minced
1 large celery stalk, diced
1 cup toasted cashew pieces
1 teaspoon minced fresh ginger
5 cups water, divided
2 teaspoons good quality curry powder or garam masala, more or less to taste
1 tablespoon lemon juice
juice of 1 fresh orange
3 cups steamed fresh green vegetables (such as finely chopped broccoli, green
peas ,diced zucchini or any combination)
salt to taste
Finely sliced scallions for garnish
Chopped cashews for garnish, optional

Heat the oil in a skillet. Add the onion, garlic and celery and saute over medium heat until all are lightly browned. remove from the heat. Place the cashews in a good processor and process until finely ground. Add the onion mixture from the skillet, the ginger and 1 cup of the water. Process until well pureed.

Transfer the mixture into a large soup pot along with the rest of the water, the curry powder or garam masala, and lemon and orange juices. Bring to a simmer, then simmer gently over low heat for 30 minutes. remove from the heat and let stand for 30 minutes to 1 hour. Return to medium heat. Add the steamed vegetables and adjust if necessary with more water to achieve a slightly thick consistency. Season to taste with salt, then serve once the soup is heated through. Garnish each serving with a sprinkling of scallion and, if desired, a few chopped cashews.
recipes found at recipe cottage

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The Soup Lady likes the soft give chewyness of heated cashews and apparently, she is not alone. Here is another fan of the cashew soup. Filmgoerjuan posts a recipe for CARROT CASHEW SOUP. I bet he has a hand-held blender.

Imagine this soup served in Stangl's Sun Pebbles bowls. Is this not the perfect match? I like this pattern becasue it's so 70s, so Joni Mitchell 'Chelsea Morning', so groovy. There's just not enough groovy around anymore, is there?