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I had started writing up this recipe last summer, but got distracted by our renovation planning. What reminded me to post this was seeing a couple of tubs of this soup sitting in our freezer. In a few months we might make this again, if this year’s garden is as productive as 2009’s.

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Here’s another way to make use of both the zucchini and tomato piles! This soup has a gentle curry twist. If you want a sweet touch, add in the raisins. Otherwise, if your tomatoes are naturally quite sweet, you can omit them.

Ingredients

• 1 to 1 1/4 pounds zucchini, chopped into 1/2-inch pieces
• 1 small to medium onion, chopped
• 1 to 2 tablespoons ghee, butter or olive oil
• 4 to 6 cloves of garlic, roughly chopped
• 1-inch ginger root, roughly chopped
• 2 to 3 teaspoons curry powder; I used Penzey’s Hot Curry Powder (Madras style).
• 1/2 pound tomatoes, roughly chopped
• 1 cup chicken or vegetable stock
• 2 to 3 cups hot water
• 1/4 cup blanched almonds
• 1/4 cup cashews
• a small pinch of saffron threads
• (optional) 1 to 2 tablespoons raisins
• salt and pepper, to taste
• garnishes (optional): yogurt, cream, etc…

Method

1. In a large pot, sauté the zucchini and onion in oil (or ghee or butter) over medium high heat until the onions become translucent. It’s okay if the zucchini fall apart or become somewhat mushy — they’ll get puréed in the end. 🙂
2. Stir in the garlic, ginger and curry. When those become fragrant, add the tomatoes, stock, water, almonds, cashews, saffron threads, and raisins, if using.
3. Bring to a simmer, set the heat to low, cover and cook until the tomatoes soften (fall apart) — about 15 to 25 minutes.
4. Purée the soup; I used a hand blender. Season with salt and pepper.
5. Serve with a dollop of yogurt or cream, if you want.