Cream of Orange Peppers and Zucchini Soup: My version of my wedding soup

Today I was inspired by a couple of orange peppers that have been in my fridge for a couple of days. I found them on sale at the grocery store and I had to get them as they were so pretty. The color was so vibrant and they surely stood out from the more common red and green varieties. I did not know what I was going to do with them then, but today I knew... a version of my wedding day dinner soup.

Many years ago, I got married in Edinburgh, Scotland. We had a fabulous, small reception at a restaurant called The Witchery by the Castle. Our starter was Cream of Yellow Peppers Soup. This is my version, made with orange peppers. I have to say the flavor was almost identical to what I remember, and maybe even better.  This is a healthy version of the traditional creamy soups that are normally made with cream, butter and thickened with flour. It only took me 25 minutes to make. Want to try it?

I thought so!

Ingredients (serves 4):

• 2 Orange Peppers (you can use yellow too)
• 2 Zucchinis
• 3 cups of water 
• 3 tsp of chicken bouillon powder
• 3 tbsp of powdered milk
• Fresh basil
• Salt, Pepper and Nutmeg to taste
• 4 tbsp grated parmesan cheese to serve

Preparation:

Cut the orange peppers and the zucchini into chunks (I made mine medium size, the smaller you cut them the faster they will cook). 

Place them in a pot with enough water so they are not fully covered, if the water covers them your soup will be too thin. Add the bouillon. Set the pot on high heat and boil until the vegetables are tender. Approximately 15 to 20 minutes. 

Half way through the time, add about 4 to 6 basil leaves to the soup.

When the vegetables are tender, place the soup mix in a blender. Always be very careful when blending hot liquids, never fill more than half of your blender with hot liquids and always start to blend with the lowest setting and increase the speed as you blend. Add the powdered milk and blend until smooth.

Put the soup back in the pot using a sieve to remove any bits from the skin of the peppers. Season to taste with pepper and a pinch of nutmeg. Use salt if needed (I did not).

Your soup is ready. Serve with a sprinkle of parmesan cheese and a sprig of basil.

Enjoy!

PS: These peppers were so cool that I had to take the seeds.... you will see them in my garden soon!