The recipe for this delicious southwestern soup is perfect for late summer evenings. It’s meant to be served chilled, but if you can’t wait, serve it warm, by all means.

Serves: 6

• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 large onion, finely chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 large green bell pepper, diced
• 7 to 8 cups diced zucchini
• 1 cup chopped ripe tomato
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1 to 1 1/2 cups cooked fresh corn kernels (from 1 to 2 ears)
• 1 cup rice milk or other nondairy milk,
  or as needed for a medium-thick consistency
• Dried hot red pepper flakes to taste
• Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
• 1/4 cup minced fresh cilantro or parsley, or more, to taste
• 1 tablespoon fresh oregano leaves

Heat the oil in a medium skillet. Add the onion and garlic and sauté over medium heat until the onion is golden. Add the bell pepper and continue to sauté until tender-crisp.

Add the chopped tomatoes, zucchini, and cumin. Add enough water to barely cover the vegetables. Bring to a gentle boil, then lower the heat and cover. Simmer gently until the zucchini is tender, about 6 minutes.

If you’d like to give the soup a thicker base, you can scoop out 2 cups of the solid ingredients and puree them in a food processor, or simply insert an immersion blender into the soup pot and puree a portion of the soup. You can skip this step if you’d like to keep the soup brothy.

Stir in the remaining ingredients. Let the soup stand off the heat for an hour or so to cool completely, then refrigerate and serve cold. This is good made a day ahead of when it’s needed.

• Here are more recipes for cold summer soups. ^[1]