Good food feeds the soul
Simple. Delicious. Real Food.
Originally published May 2017, updated May, 2026. Sooooo, I went all out on this grilled cheeseburger recipe. We’re talking thick grass-fed patties, homemade brioche buns, melted aged cheddar, fresh arugula, creamy avocado, and finished with a sweet, spicy, bacon-kissed raspberry jam that makes the whole …
Updated May 2026 — Originally published May 2022. When the hubby was back visiting his parents in the States, I got serious about finding the perfect black bean burger recipe. Not one of those dense, mushy imposters that leaves you wishing you’d just ordered the …
Updated May 2026 — Originally published July 2013. The first time I brought this goat cheese cheesecake to a friend’s summer barbecue, the reaction was… not what I hoped for. “Why did you bring cheesecake with goat cheese in it?” was the general vibe cause …
I was hooked from the first bite of steamed mussels in white wine. I can’t remember where I ate that classic dish the first time, but since then… if steam mussels are on the menu, I happily order them. Which has been every country we’ve …
Our first taste of Favas com Enchidos the inspiration for this recipe Portuguese Fava Bean Stew with Chorizo was at a traditional restaurant in Porto called Talhasca Villa Parda. Tucked into the Lapa neighborhood, the hubby and I visit every time we’re in the city. …
Caprese salad has been one of my favorite salads for years. It’s served often in restaurants in the States. And I loved it. It’s always the best flavors of summer, especially when you get one served with a vine ripened tomato. Unfortunately, most of the …
In 2016, we lived in Morocco for two and a half months, where we ate plenty of tagines and couscous. What I wasn’t expecting was the Moroccan Salad or as the Moroccans call it salade marocaine. I ordered my first one in one of the …
The farmers market here in Portugal right now is an abundance of spring veg and herbs. Fresh fava beans, new potatoes still wearing their dirt, fennel, green peas still in the pod, courgettes (zucchini), and mint… so much bright green mint it’s practically growing in …
Originally posted June 2021. Updated July 2026. I LOVE mussels (the other type as well 😉). They are absolutely one of my favorite types of seafood. Cook them up the classic way Steamed Mussels in White Wine with a little butter, garlic, and parsley. OR …
“Honey, we need to make an orange saffron chicken wing. It’ll be so good. Here, try this.” That bite of gelato was the inspiration for this recipe for Crispy Baked Chicken Wings with Orange Saffron Sticky Sauce was born. Now you might be thinking ‘how …
Originally published May 30, 2011, updated April, 2026. The moment we landed in Morocco, someone handed us tea. I was immediately in love because most of the countries we visit are coffee forward. And I’m not a coffee drinker. I love a good tea. Not …
Updated April 2026 — Originally published April 2014 Easter is right around the corner… and with it, one of my favorite traditions… dying Easter eggs and eating deviled eggs, egg salad, salads with eggs, sandwiches with egg on them. I might not have mentioned this …
Growing up in the southern US, deviled eggs were non-negotiable at every single gathering. After Sunday church service. At a pig picking. And at Easter, of course. So much at Easter, I get a craving every year just seeing the Peeps in the stores. The …
The farmers market here in Portugal right now is an abundance of spring veg and herbs. Fresh fava beans, new potatoes still wearing their dirt, fennel, green peas still in the pod, courgettes (zucchini), and mint… so much bright green mint it’s practically growing in the stalls. I came home loaded with courgettes, a bunch of mint the size of my forearm, fennel, and some of the spring potatoes. All the inspiration for this spring soup… a vegan zucchini soup with peas and mint.
It’s light, a beautiful pale green, and silky smooth. You can totally eat a second bowl without guilt. No cream, no butter. Just vegetables, coconut milk, red lentils, and mint doing their thing highlighting the small, delicate spring courgettes. And so easy to make, ready in about 30 minutes from start to finish.
So, when you’ve got a farmers market 2 blocks from where you live, you cook totally differently than you do in the States. There most fruits and veggies are available year around since they are shipped in from around the world. In Portugal and most of Europe, they tend to eat what’s locally grown and in season. So, we don’t plan as much as we respond. You can go one weekend and get something that will be gone the next. So, you buy what’s beautiful and figure it out at home. That’s exactly how this zucchini pea mint soup came to be.
Every spring, mint and fava beans show up at exactly the same time, in the same stalls, and they’re always piled next to each other. Same with peas and mint. It’s not a coincidence — ingredients that are natural flavor pairings almost always grow in the same place at the same time. Mother Nature had this beautiful plan to put them together long before we did.
And normally I’m carrying home bags of favas, but not this weekend. It was the small spring courgettes, the fresh mint, the peas just shelled from the pod, and those new potatoes with damp soil still on them… that not only made the basket, but also they all ended up in the pot together.
If you’ve only ever made zucchini soup in high summer, you’re in for a pleasant surprise with the spring version. Early-season courgettes are smaller, more delicate, and much less watery than the high heat season ones from July and August. They have a subtle, sweet flavor that doesn’t need to be masked or coaxed out. They just need to be gently cooked and blended.
And because the weather is much cooler, they grow slower so the smaller ones five to six inch long end up in the markets. Most of what I brought home was no longer than my hand. If you’re in the US, look for the smaller zucchini at the farmers market or grab the younger ones from the grocery store… they’ll give you the best flavor for a spring soup like this one.
Btw, if you’d like another of my favorite zucchini recipes, try this one for Corn, Zucchini and Pepper with Swiss Cheese Quesadillas. It’s freaking A-MAZ-ING.
This soup? It’s so damn good. Creamy without cream. Satisfying without meat or a heavy starch base. Bright and green and genuinely delicious. I admit I’m totally patting myself on the back for this one. It’s so worth a go.
So, here’s what’s doing the work:
I started substituting coconut milk for heavy cream a few years ago when the hubby had a digestive thing and needed to avoid dairy for a few months. I grabbed a can on a whim, and honestly? We never went back.
Not because milk isn’t delicious — I’m not about to give up my cheese or my goat milk chai lattes — but because coconut milk does something different. It’s lighter. It coats the mouth beautifully without the heaviness cream brings.
And no, it doesn’t taste like coconut. Not in a soup with this much garlic, fennel, and mint. It just adds that silky, rich texture you’re looking for.
This is a trick I picked up in Portugal. The Portuguese add potato to soups to thicken them naturally, and it works brilliantly like in the Sopa de Feijão Verde (Portuguese Green Bean Soup). Another beautifully light soup that is yummy in the spring and summer.
One medium to large potato, cooked until completely soft and blended in, gives you all the body and creaminess you’d expect from a roux-thickened soup without any of the fuss. And without the starch. More importantly, it doesn’t change the flavor… it just deepens the texture.
Nobody will know they’re there. They dissolve completely when blended, leaving behind a smooth, slightly thicker soup and a protein boost that makes this genuinely filling. I use red lentils as my secret ingredient in a lot of soups and stews for exactly this reason… invisible nutrition, no beany aftertaste. I updated the traditional Portuguese Caldo Verde Soup with some.
This is non-negotiable. Both are delicate. Both are what give this soup its beautiful pale green color and fresh flavor.
If you add them at the beginning with everything else, you’ll cook out all that brightness and end up with a dull, khaki-colored soup that tastes like it’s been sitting on a steam table. Add them at the very end, after everything else is cooked — just long enough to warm the peas through — then blend immediately.
I know it’s tempting to just dump everything in the pot and walk away. That’s how my mom and grandma made soups. I completely understand that impulse. It’s so easy. But… there’s a reason you don’t, and it’s not just chef habit.
When you build a soup by layering in ingredients and giving each one a minute or two in the hot oil before adding the next, you’re building flavor in a way that the dump-and-simmer method never achieves. Each vegetable releases its sugars and aromatics into the oil. Those become part of the flavor base that everything else builds on top of. So, much extra flavor.
When I’m building soups, I always start with the onion first into the pot. Then comes the tougher veggies like carrots, celery, fennel, and potatoes. Then the garlic.
Btw, the garlic goes in after the vegetables, not before like most recipes recommend. Unfortunately, when you put in the garlic at the same time as the onion, it ends up burnt. Instead, stir it into the oil for about 30 seconds to a minute, until you smell it waking up. Then it’s time for the more delicate veggies like the zucchini.
You also want to add the spices, seasonings and dried herbs to the hot oil before adding the liquids. Again, your cue that they are ready is you start smelling the fragrances of them releasing the oils.
Finish with veggies and herb that are fully edible eaten raw, like the peas and mint. Added the last few minutes of cooking.
Btw, if you’re not a mint fan or just don’t have any, you can substitute fresh basil or thyme and of course, more tarragon.
So, this one does not have the hubby’s tasting notes since he’s back in the States visiting his father. But hey was on live video feed while I was finishing it off and tasting it. As I described it, he said ‘well that sounds healthy’ in that way that means, ‘good-for-you-but-probably-not-that-exciting for eating’ kind of tone.
I laughed a bit at the tone. He’s not wrong that it’s healthy. But this is one of those kinds of soups you want to eat because genuinely good — smooth, bright, a little creamy, deeply savory — not because someone told you to eat more vegetables. I had a second bowl. And I’m looking forward to the leftovers. I mean does anyone ever make a small amount of soup?
The lentils add enough protein to make this a satisfying light lunch on its own. It also works beautifully as a starter before a bigger meal, or alongside a good sandwich or salad. This absolutely delicious zucchini soup with peas and mint earns its place on the table in multiple situations.
It’s even good cold.
Warm: Ladle into bowls and top with fresh mint leaves — sliced or torn, whatever you have — and a drizzle of good olive oil. Crusty bread alongside is non-negotiable in this house. The soup is so smooth it practically asks to be swiped up with bread.
Chilled: This one actually holds up beautifully served cold, which makes it a genuinely useful summer recipe too. Cool the soup completely, refrigerate for at least 2 hours (overnight is better), and serve in chilled bowls. The mint comes forward more when it’s cold, and the whole thing tastes remarkably refreshing on a warm day.
As a starter: The creaminess and bright color make it an elegant first course if you’re having people over. Pour it into smaller bowls, add the garnish, and let the mint do the visual work.
This soup is a batch cook dream. Make a big pot on Sunday and you have lunches ready for half the week.
It keeps well in the fridge for 3–4 days. For freezing, cool it completely and portion into containers… it’ll keep for up to 3 months. I’d add the lemon juice after reheating rather than before freezing, since citrus can sometimes turn slightly bitter once frozen and thawed. Everything else freezes perfectly.
Reheat gently on the stovetop over medium-low heat, adding a splash of water or stock if it’s thickened up in the fridge. Taste and adjust seasoning… cold mutes salt, so it usually needs a little more once reheated.
Do you decide what’s going to end up in your soups based on whatever you came home from the market with or is in the fridge? I’d love to know what ended up in yours… drop it in the comments. And if you try this one warm vs. cold, tell me which wins. Plus, leave any questions you have there.
Here’s what makes the process smooth and the results consistently good:
We are a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites. These links and other affiliate links like them do not cost you any extra when shopping but they do help us fund the creation of this site and publications.
