Chilled honeydew soup with coconut-cilantro pesto
Instructions:
- Soup:
- 6 cups honeydew melon chunks;
- 1⁄2 cup well-stirred canned coconut milk (regular or lite);
- 2 tablespoons light, floral honey (such as acacia, tupelo, or orange blossom), or to taste;
- 1⁄4 cup fresh lime juice;
- 1⁄4 teaspoon kosher salt.
- Pesto:
- 6 tablespoons fresh lemon juice;
- 4 teaspoons sugar;
- 2 tablespoons peeled and finely grated fresh ginger;
- 2 teaspoons chopped garlic;
- 1 teaspoon finely chopped Serrano chile, or to taste;
- 2 tablespoons dried unsweetened coconut or sweetened flaked coconut;
- 1⁄4 teaspoon kosher salt;
- 2 cups firmly packed, coarsely chopped cilantro leaves.
- For the soup:
- Puree the melon in a blender. Add the coconut milk, honey, lime juice, and salt. Pour into a bowl or large jar, cover, and refrigerate until chilled, at least 2 hours.
- For the pesto: Place (in the order listed) the lemon juice, sugar, ginger, garlic, chile, coconut, and salt and 1 cup of the cilantro in a blender and blend just until ground; do not liquefy. Add the rest of the cilantro and blend just until the cilantro is incorporated and the pesto is a thick paste. Scrape into a bowl or glass jar, cover, and refrigerate for up to 2 days.
- Serve the soup cold, topped with a generous spoonful of Coconut-Cilantro Pesto.
- What else works? You can use fresh spearmint in place of some of the cilantro.