Blender Cucumber-Yogurt Soup with Dill and Walnuts

By Sprig Originals ✓ · cooked up in Sprig

Everything good about tzatziki, loosened into a spoonable summer soup. The blender does all of it: cucumbers, thick Greek yogurt, garlic, dill and a splash of red wine vinegar go in raw and come out pale green and silky in under a minute. No stove, no chopping board full of dishes — just chill it, scatter over crushed walnuts and good olive oil, and eat it with torn pita on the hottest night of the year.

Ingredients

• 2 large English cucumbers
• 2 cups full-fat Greek yogurt
• 1 clove garlic, peeled
• 1/2 cup fresh dill fronds, loosely packed
• 1 1/2 tbsp red wine vinegar
• 3 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 tsp fine salt

• 1/3 cup walnut halves

Instructions

1. Trim the cucumbers and cut them into rough 1-inch chunks, skin on (peel them if the skin is thick or waxed). Set aside about 1/2 cup of the chunks for the topping and put the rest in the blender.
2. Add the Greek yogurt, garlic clove, dill (save a few fronds for serving), red wine vinegar, 2 tablespoons of the olive oil and the salt. Blend on high for 45–60 seconds, scraping down once, until completely smooth and pale green with no flecks of garlic left. With the motor running, add 1/4 to 1/2 cup of cold water until the soup pours like heavy cream. Taste and add salt or another splash of vinegar — it should be brightly tangy.
3. Cover and chill at least 30 minutes, or up to 2 days; it thickens as it sits, so stir in a little more cold water before serving if needed. Meanwhile, pulse the walnuts and reserved cucumber chunks together in the blender 3 or 4 times, just 1 second each, to a coarse crunchy rubble — do not let it turn to paste. (A quick rinse of the blender jar between jobs is enough.)
4. Ladle the cold soup into 4 bowls. Spoon the walnut-cucumber rubble into the centre of each, drizzle with the remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil, scatter with the reserved dill and a pinch of salt, and serve straight away with pita or crusty bread.

Chef's tips

Nutrition (per serving, estimated)

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