RECIPE: Make Café Alsace’s Cold Avocado-Roasted Garlic Soup
Whenever I go to Café Alsace in Decatur, I immediately check the board of specials to see what the chef has come up with that day. These dishes never disappoint. While I usually focus on the amazing quiche recipes, our last visit enlightened me to pay more attention to the soups. The cold avocado-garlic soup was both rich and light — perfect for a summer lunch on the patio. Can you possibly get the recipe? — Mary Lynn Huie, Lilburn
Café Alsace chef-owner Bénédicte Cooper was happy to share this recipe, which she agrees is perfect for summer. She suggests serving it with a crisp baguette and butter, and a glass of Crémant d’Alsace, an Alsatian sparkling wine.
Cooper recommends using Knorr beef liquid concentrated flavor base, widely available at grocery stores. We suggest starting with the smaller quantity listed and then adding more to taste.
Café Alsace’s Cold Avocado-Roasted Garlic Soup
- 10 peeled garlic cloves
- 6 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
- 6 cups whole milk
- 4 large avocadoes, pitted, peeled and diced
- 6 tablespoons lemon juice
- 1/2 cup beef liquid concentrated flavor base, or to taste up to 1 cup
- Salt and pepper, to taste
- Wedges of cherry or small plum tomatoes, for garnishing
- Smoked paprika, for garnishing
- Heat oven to 350 degrees. Arrange garlic cloves in a small ramekin and add olive oil. Roast, uncovered, 10 to 15 minutes or until garlic is soft. Remove from oven and allow to cool. Use a wooden spoon to smash the garlic and oil into a puree.
- In a large mixing bowl, combine milk, diced avocado, lemon juice, 1/2 cup beef base and roasted garlic puree. Use a hand mixer to puree the mixture. Taste and add salt and pepper and more beef base, if desired. Chill soup until ready to serve.
- Divide between soup bowls and garnish with tomato wedges and smoked paprika.
Nutritional information
Per serving: Per 1/2-cup serving: 189 calories (percent of calories from fat, 72), 4 grams protein, 9 grams carbohydrates, 5 grams total sugars, 3 grams fiber, 14 grams total fat (3 grams saturated), 8 milligrams cholesterol, 88 milligrams sodium.From the menu of ... Café Alsace, 121 E. Ponce de Leon Ave., Decatur; 404-373-5622, cafealsace.net.
Is there a recipe from a metro Atlanta restaurant you’d like to make at home? Tell us and we’ll try to get it. We’ll also test it and adapt it for the home kitchen. Because of volume, we can’t answer all inquiries. Send your request, your address and phone number to fromthemenu@gmail.com and put “From the menu of” and the name of the restaurant in the subject line.
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