Had this soup been in a Soup Contest, it would have been a contender. It is terrific! Creamy without being too stiff, rich but still wanting a bit so you can keep sipping, perfectly flavored. Delicious!

I made several substitutions. We are out of homegrown frozen zucchini but have an abundance of yellow squash. I used ham & bean stock rather than chicken, and veggie stock base rather than chicken. I also mashed the squash in the food processor, rather than through a sieve.

CREAM OF ZUCCHINI SOUP

Makes about 4 C soup

3 C or 1 lb sliced zucchini

½ C chicken stock

1 Tbsp minced onion

1 tsp all purpose seasoning

1 Tbsp parsley, minced

2 Tbsp butter

2 Tbsp flour

2 tsp chicken stock base

1/8 tsp white pepper

1/8 tsp Accent

¼ tsp celery seed

¼ tsp onion powder

1 C milk, maybe more

½ C light cream

Sour cream

Paprika or Creole seasoning

Slivered almonds

Combine zucchini, stock, onion, all purpose seasoning, and parsley, and cook until zucchini is tender and only a small amount of stock is left. Mash mixture through a sieve. Melt butter in a saucepan, add flour, stock base, white pepper, Accent, celery seed, and onion powder, blending well, then add 1 C milk and cream. Simmer sauce, stirring, until thickened, and stir in zucchini mixture, mixing well. If soup is thicker than desired, add additional milk. Serve topped with a dollop of sour cream, and garnished with paprika or Creole seasoning and slivered almonds.