COLD Spicy Thai Watermelon Soup

My husband and I bought a watermelon at a farm stand. Upon opening it, we discovered the interior was nearly in gelatinous format, deeply red, and profoundly sweet. We looked at each other and said, "this would make an amazing soup!" So the search began. The original of this was a cold watermelon crab soup -- and you know by now that we wouldn't be using the crab! This is how it turned out -- using a fraction of the melon -- and we were so grateful after hot mornings of heavy yard work, to come in and start lunch with this!

Cold Spicy Thai Watermelon Soup

(2 quarts)

5 cups chopped watermelon
1 stalk finely chopped lemongrass -- or 1 Tblsp grated lemon zest (which is what I did)
3 Tablespoons finely chopped onion (or shallot if you have it)
1.5 Tablespoon fresh grated or finely chopped ginger
1 small green chile (with or without seeds) finely chopped (I used half a jalapeno)
1 Tablespoon garlic finely chopped
2 Tablespoons fresh lime juice (at least)
Salt to taste

1) Puree watermelon, using a hand held blender is fine.
2) Cook lemongrass (or lemon zest) with onion, ginger & garlic for about 5 minutes medium low heat. Add about 2 cups of the watermelon and simmer 5 more minutes.
3) Blend the chili and lime juice in a big bowl, and add the hot mixture to it.
4) Add the rest of the watermelon puree, and pour it through a sieve it there are lumps in it -- otherwise you can just blend lightly with the hand blender.

5) CHILL and serve.

ADDITIONS: We had leftover tiny bits of sauteed spicy tofu from the night before that were perfect as a decorative central chewiness to stir in. Easy to make with little cubes of tofu, saute in a bit of Bragg Liquid Amino and a squirt of Sriracha with added garlic bits.   You could definitely use crunchy bits of onion or garlic, a dab of coconut yogurt, chopped chives and mango or ANYTHING that pleases you, including mint leaves.

Thai Spicy Watermelon Soup Nutrition Facts Serving Size: 1 Serving (190g) Amount Per Serving % Daily Value* Calories 82 4% Total Fat 2g 3% Saturated Fat 0g 2% Trans Fat Cholesterol 0% Sodium 236mg 10% Total Carbohydrate 14g 5% Dietary Fiber 1g 4% Sugars 10g 0% Protein 4g 8% Vitamin A 3% • Vitamin C 29% Calcium 4% • Iron 7% * Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet. Your daily values may be higher or lower depending on your calories needs. courtesy of cronometer.com using my data.