Soup often prompts thoughts of warm winter meals, but summer soup recipes have the power to beat the heat. Different types of soup, from cold to hot, provide benefits beyond the bowl.
Full of easy-to-digest, hydrating recipes, stay healthy this summer with the ultimate soup list. Read on for 18 ultimate summer soup recipes to try!
What Is Summer Soup?
Summer soups are generally recipes that contain plenty of seasonal vegetables, fruits, herbs, and spices. Cold and chilled soups, such as gazpacho or pea soup, are more common in the summertime.
While sipping fruits or cold veggies in a soup consistency might seem strange at first, many people find summer soups satisfy with unique and unexpected flavors.
Can You Eat Soup In the Summer?
Soups have many delicious benefits. Adding soup to a balanced diet can help improve the following:
• Weight management
• Diet quality
• Heart health
• Gastrointestinal (GI) health
• Diet modifications
Summer varieties of soup are an excellent way to add nutrients and variety to the menu.
How to Make Summer Soups
Recipes for summer soups are typically simple but tasty. The easiest way to make a summer soup is to find a recipe with seasonal summer produce, plus a nutrient-rich broth or water to add nutrients and hydration.
Seasonal Summer Vegetables for Soups
Many veggies reach peak ripeness in the summer. This makes them the ideal ingredients in summer soup. Most vegetables have low levels of calories, high levels of nutrients, and offer additional hydration to the diet.
A few favorite summer vegetables for soups include:
• Beets
• Bell peppers
• Carrots
• Celery
• Corn
• Cucumbers
• Eggplant
• Okra
• Green beans
• Summer squash
• Tomatillos
• Tomatoes
• Zucchini
Seasonal Summer Fruits for Soups
Fruits may not seem like an obvious choice for soup. However, fruits can add a natural sweetness and perfect flavor balance among other ingredients.
Popular summer fruits used in soups include:
• Apples
• Apricots
• Avocados
• Blueberries
• Blackberries
• Cherries
• Lemons
• Limes
• Melons (i.e. Cantaloupe, watermelon, honeydew melon)
• Peaches
• Plums
• Raspberries
• Strawberries
The ultimate summer soup list contains a combination of hot and cold soups with seasonal produce. Easy to make, digest, and quick to cook, these are come-back-for-seconds summer soups.
The Best Cold and Chilled Summer Soups
When the weather is toasty, a nice chilled soup can be just the ticket. It might seem unconventional eating soup cold at first. However, many people find summer cold soups refreshing and re-energizing.
1. Chilled Summer Gazpacho
Full of seasonal produce, a chilled summer gazpacho can easily be made dairy-free. Made with green beans, zucchini, lemon juice, and herbs and spices, chilled gazpacho is delightfully cold and full of fresh flavors. Topped with chopped nuts or fresh chopped veggies, it is filled to the brim with nutrients and hydrating seasonal foods.
2. Mix-and-Match Melon Soup
Melons may just be the stars of summer. With extraordinary levels of hydration, melons lend water and nutrients to busy summer bodies. Mix-and-match melon soup makes use of whatever is on hand and is a great chilled option for kids.
3. Chilled Beet Soup
Beets turn this soup a pretty pink color. Chilled beet soup wows with unexpected and unique flavor combinations and is topped with a sprig of fresh mint. Creamy, delicious, with a dash of salt and pepper, chilled beet soup cannot be beet.
4. Cold Curried Carrot Soup
Make-ahead cold curried carrot soup is as alliterative as it is appetizing. Six simple ingredients combine in this cold bowl to make bold flavors shine. Yogurt gives the soup a creamy texture enjoyed cold.
5. Chilled Cucumber Avocado
Chilled cucumber avocado soup makes it look easy being green. What makes it stand out as a summer soup? Cucumbers are highly hydrating with magnificent water content.
Avocados also add healthy fats to the delectable dish, and additional seasonal veggies like corn or tomato can be used to top the soup.
6. Chilled Blueberry Soup
For a summer soup that is sweet rather than savory, try chilled blueberry soup. Rumored to originate in Eastern Europe, chilled blueberry soup leftovers can be used to create popsicles. Instead of sugar, use half a cup of honey for a naturally sweetened soup.
7. Watermelon Gazpacho
Almost every ingredient in a watermelon gazpacho is seasonal and simply says "summer". Served cold but not frozen, gazpacho is refreshing and hydrating. The soup consistency of gazpacho makes it an easy-to-digest dish with lots of delicious, budget-friendly ingredients.
The Best Vegan and Vegetarian Summer Soups
If looking for a plant-based option or a few, look no further than these refreshing summer soups featuring root vegetables and more!
8. Easy Vegetarian Bean Soup
Zucchini and mushroom make vegetarian bean soup an easy summer dish. Not only is it budget-friendly at less than $1 per serving, this soup also maximizes nutrition. Easy to make, freeze, and enjoy at any time, this soup is a summer meal no-brainer.
9. Lentil Instant Pot Soup
Plant-based protein plus fresh produce turn an Instant Pot recipe into a sure sensation. Lentil soup includes seasonal favorites, such as carrots, celery, garlic, tomatoes, and lemons. It also contains optimal levels of nutrients since it is jam-packed with vegetable ingredients.
10. Instant Pot Tuscan White Bean, Vegetable, and Bread Soup
With the sausage as an option to make it vegetarian, instant pot bean, veggie, and bread soup is an Italian-flavored favorite. Yellow summer squash is a great ingredient to include in this summer soup recipe.
11. Mediterranean Lemon Lentil Soup
With a side of bread, this low-calorie, high-nutrient Mediterranean soup is pretty filling. Thanks to lentils and fresh summer picks like carrot and garlic, this soup contains protein, fiber, and anti-inflammatory ingredients. Lemon zest and juice keep ingredients feeling fresh with a Mediterranean twist.
12. Roasted Carrot Apple Soup
Summer fruits, meet summer vegetables. Roasted carrot and apple soup blends two favorite flavors seamlessly. Plus, it can be made vegan, gluten-free, grain-free, nut-free, soy-free, egg-free, and dairy-free.
The Best Hot Summer Soups
While the weather might be warm, sometimes cozying up to a hot soup is heard to beat. Enjoy the fresh warms of summer with unique twists of corn chowder, minestrone soup, and more!
13. Slow Cooker Green Chile Soup
Nothing is better than a slow cooker soup. Fresh or canned diced tomatoes make this seasonal green chile soup perfect for balancing busy schedules. Simply throw all the ingredients in and cook for a couple of hours.
14. Cioppino Soup
Simple and a staple for rainy summer days, cioppino soup checks all the boxes. With chopped bell peppers, celery, tomato, and more, an Italian seafood classic is sure to satisfy. Full of needed nutrients and healthy fats from fish, this summer dish is sure to be a crowd-pleaser.
15. Carrot and Sweet Potato Soup
Still craving fall flavors in the summer? Carrot and sweet potato soup blends leftover sweet potatoes from the freezer (or canned pantry staples) with the fresh flavors of summer produce. Creamy textures and seasonal carrots make this summer soup a smashing hit while waiting for fall.
16. Pressure Cooker Minestrone Soup
Full of fiber, summer minestrone soup makes the most of seasonal ingredients. Green beans and other bean varieties add nutrients and protein as well. Diced tomatoes, celery, and garlic up the flavor as seasonal ingredients at their peak.
17. Healthy Chicken Zucchini Soup
Looking for a low-calorie, low-carbohydrate summer soup with high levels of nutrients? Zucchini shines bright in all its summer glory in healthy chicken zucchini soup. This summer soup makes comfort food with a twist taste healthy and delicious.
18. Summer Corn & Zucchini Chowder
There’s nothing like a summer soup to celebrate fresh flavor. Topped with toasted pine nuts to lend additional nutrients, summer corn and zucchini chowder might just be the best saved for last. With low sodium broth and feta cheese to top it, this summer soup wins all the prizes.
References:
Rao S. 20 Chilled Soup Recipes to Help You Cool Off. Brit.co. Published May 6, 2014. https://www.brit.co/chilled-soup/.
U. S. Department of Agriculture. Seasonal Produce Guide. Accessed April 7, 2021. https://snaped.fns.usda.gov/seasonal-produce-guide.
