Life's a Bowl of Cucumbers... Without Pits

Here's an interesting and refreshing warm weather recipe from Elisabeth Kahan who, with her husband, own the Vineyard Canyon Ranch Olive Oil Company. She first sampled it at the Los Olivos Jazz and Olive Festival.

Their olive oil, btw, recently won a Gold Medal at the L.A. County Fair.

Check out the Wine Whisperer's (pictured below) buy of the week. It's a wine that would go perfectly with this soup.

CUCUMBER MELON SOUP

4 English Cucumbers, peeled and diced

½ Honeydew melon, peeled and diced

2 Green Onions, chopped

1 Serrano Chile, seeded and finely chopped

1 Celery rib, finely chopped

Leaves from 2 springs fresh mint, chopped

Leaves from ½ bunch fresh cilantro, chopped

½ Cup Rice Wine vinegar
Vineyard Canyon Ranch Olive Oil

Salt – Sea or Kosher to taste

Pepper – Freshly Ground to taste

2 Tbsp. Low-fat Plain Yogurt

1 Lemon (juiced)

1 Tbsp fresh Flat-leaf parsley, chopped

Combine cucumbers, melon, onions, chile, celery, mint, cilantro, and vinegar in large bowl. Drizzle with Vineyard Canyon Ranch Olive Oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Stir till well blended. Puree in blender or food processor. Refrigerate until well chilled. *

In a small bowl, combine yogurt, lemon juice, parsley, and a teaspoon of Vineyard Canyon Ranch Olive Oil. Refrigerate.

To serve, spoon soup into bowls and top with a drizzle of yogurt mixture.

*Soup may be poured into a bowl and the bowl placed into a large pot of ice water to chill for 30 minutes.