On some of summer’s hottest days, dessert can run the risk of turning what should be a meal’s crowning glory into the last straw. When the weather feels oppressive, who needs something overly filling as the final course?
Most of the time, we turn to the freezer for warm-weather desserts. Ice creams, sorbets and other frozen treats are proven pleasers. But even they can sit heavy sometimes, especially after a big grilled meal.
So let me suggest something that doesn’t seem too different but can actually feel like a major change of pace to end a summer meal: a bowl of soup.
I’m not talking about just any soup, of course. When served as a finale, the soup should be sweet, made from some of summer’s ripe, juicy fruit. Naturally, it also has to be a cold soup that leaves you feeling light and refreshed. And all those qualifications are more than met by my recipe for honeydew melon soup.
It’s incredibly easy to turn summertime’s sweet, juicy seasonal fruit into a beautiful chilled soup to serve for a light dessert. Just imagine the way melons like honeydew hit a seasonal peak. (The same goes for other sweet melon varieties, such as Persian or Sharlyn melons; and stone fruit, especially peaches or nectarines, are also good soup candidates.) It’s easy to puree that fruit with a blender or food processor, then pass it through a sieve for an even consistency. In many cases, the puree will be sweet enough to serve as is, but if it’s not, just adding a little quick-dissolving superfine sugar will do the trick. And then, just before serving, I like to add some sweet sparkling wine to finish the soup.
You can also add a few extra special touches before serving the cold fruit soup: Sprinkle a few plump summer berries on top, or try some bits of lemon and lime with mint leaves to complement the soup’s color. You could even place a scoop of your favorite sorbet in the center, if you like. The result is as beautiful and tempting as can be. You’ll be happy you made this soup with every cool, quenching spoonful you raise to your lips.
HONEYDEW MELON SOUP
Serves 4
Ingredients:
6 cups ripe sweet honeydew melon pieces, well chilled
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
Superfine sugar (optional)
1 cup Moscato d’Asti or other sweet sparkling wine, well chilled
2 cups mixed fresh berries or pieces of other fresh fruit
Fresh mint
Directions:
Put the melon pieces and lemon juice in a blender or food processor fitted with the stainless-steel blade. Blend or process until the melon is finely pureed, stopping as necessary to scrape down the bowl with a rubber spatula.
Taste the puree. Only if you feel you need to, pulse in a little superfine sugar to sweeten the puree to your liking.
Strain the puree through a fine-meshed sieve set over a nonreactive bowl, pressing the puree through with the rubber spatula. Discard the solids left in the sieve. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap, and refrigerate for at least 1 hour.
Before serving, stir the sparkling wine into the melon puree. To serve the soup, ladle it into chilled shallow soup plates. Place the fruit garnish and mint leaves in each bowl. Serve immediately.