Vanilla-Roasted Peach Soup with Cardamom Cream

Roasting the peaches brings out their natural sweetness and makes them soft and easy to peel. But if you want to bypass that step, just use very ripe peeled peaches, and puree them with the honey.

3 peaches, halved and pitted (about 2 pounds)
2 tablespoons sugar
1 (4-inch) piece vanilla bean, split lengthwise
1 1/2 tablespoons honey
1 1/2 cups orange juice
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 cup low-fat sour cream
1/8 teaspoon ground cardamom
Sliced peeled peaches (optional)

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

2. Combine peach halves and sugar in a large bowl. Scrape the seeds from vanilla bean, and add seeds to the bowl; discard bean. Toss the peach mixture well. Place the peaches, cut sides down, on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Bake peaches at 350 degrees for 25 minutes or until tender; cool. Peel and discard skins. Place peaches and honey in a blender or food processor, and process until smooth. Add juice, salt, and vanilla; process until well-blended. Pour into a bowl; cover and chill for 2 hours. Combine the sour cream and cardamom. Ladle soup into bowls; top with cardamom cream. Garnish with sliced peaches, if desired. Yield: 4 servings (serving size: 1 cup soup and 1 tablespoon cardamom cream).

Calories: 143 (12% from fat); Fat 1.9g (sat 1.1g, mono 0.6g, poly 0.1g); Protein 1.6g; Carb 31.7g; Fiber 1.7g; Chol 6mg; Iron 0.2mg; Sodium 81mg; Calc 29mg.

Recipe by Jean Patterson and Danae Campbell

"Fruit in Your Soup"
Copyright 2000 by Jean Patterson and Danae Campbell.
Originally published in Cooking Light, August 2000.
All rights reserved. For reprint information, contact Jean Patterson.