This simple soup is fresh, light, and suitable for any season thanks to convenient frozen peas. Try it chilled in summer with a garnish of pretty pea shoots, or piping hot in winter with chunks of warm, crusty bread.
| Sour CreamDill Topping | ||
| 1/2 | cup | sour cream |
| 1/2 | teaspoon | dried dill weed |
| 2 | teaspoons | milk |
| Pea Soup | ||
| 2 | tablespoons | olive oil |
| 1 | medium | onion, chopped |
| 1 | stalk | celery, chopped |
| 2 | cups | frozen peas, thawed |
| 2 | 14-ounce cans | chicken broth |
| 1/2 | teaspoon | salt |
| 1/4 | teaspoon | freshly ground black pepper |
Sour Cream–Dill Topping
1. Combine the sour cream and dill in a small nonreactive bowl, cover with plastic wrap, and refrigerate for 2–3 hours while the flavors develop.
2. Remove from the refrigerator 20 minutes before serving.
3. Just before serving, add the milk if the topping is too thick to swirl nicely into the soup.
Pea Soup
1. Place the olive oil in a medium sauté pan set over a medium-high flame.
2. Add the onion and cook for 2 minutes. Add the celery and continue cooking until the onions are translucent and the celery is soft, approximately 10 to12 minutes. Cool to room temperature.
3. Combine the onions, celery, peas, broth, salt, and pepper into a food processor, food mill, or blender jar and puree.
4. Pour the soup into a bowl, cover it with plastic wrap, and refrigerate for 2–3 hours to let the flavors develop.
5. Remove from the refrigerator 20 minutes before serving if planning a cold soup.
6. Adjust the seasonings to your taste and heat the soup if desired.
7. Ladle into bowls and swirl in the sour cream-dill topping. Apply the sour cream with a squirt bottle to create a fancy design, or simply drop in a dollop and swirl with a knife or fork.
8. Serve immediately.
