Creamy Zucchini and Basil Soup

I'm no vegetarian. Hell and I am miles away from being a vegan.

I love meat. Meat Meat Meat. I love me some juicy beef in my mouth. Yes. You heard me right!
Innuendos aside, I also am a complete hypocrite.
When it comes to eating meat, I block out the fact that what I am stuffing into my face has once been alive and kickin'. Whole fish with head and all is also not the most comforting sight to see.
Hey there big fella! You enjoy my filet? Don't mind me, I'm just watching you devouring my body. SHIIIIVERRS.

Is that a good thing? No. But that's the way it is with me and I doubt I'm alone with that.

Most people, including my humble self, are used to dishing up good ol' steak and Co. almost on a daily basis or at least too often. While many may argue at this point that ANY number is too often, I'll leave that aspect out for now. However, sneaking in some days where the only things on the menue never had a pulse is not the worst thing you can do to yourself and probably to your wallet as well. I mean, it should not be too difficult to find other nice things to spend that extra money on, right? (Like uhhm, a better camera...? Although that would take some major meat-omitting...so...hm.)

And then, there is the extra step again. Veganism. I know that to many, "vegan" is a term that equals "bland",  "boring" or, well, "thank you, but no thank you". Not. The. Case. Let that be told to you by an omnivore: Vegan cuisine DONE RIGHT can be down right delicious, comforting and filling - without leaving the feeling of anything missing.

A great resource for super healthy vegan cuisine is FatFree Vegan Kitchen. I love how Susan finds ways to veganize known and loved dishes and also reduces the fat to a minimum. You also find many recipes with Asian and Oriental twists. The only thing to critisize for me is that many recipes require spices and ingredients that I usually don't have myself and probably won't use completely before they expire. However, this is not the case with the following, which to me perfectly captures the way a mild evening in summer is supposed to be.

I served the soup with some nice oven-roasted herbed potato wedges, but some nice bread'll do just fine.

Directly adapted from her blog:

Creamy Zucchini and Basil Soup
Servings: 6; my own comments are put in italics.

• 2 pounds zucchini (about 5 small to medium)
• 1 large Vidalia onion, chopped (I just use onions I have got on hand)
• 4 cloves garlic, crushed
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
• 3 cups vegetable broth (I simply use water and then add the needed amount of granulated vegetable broth directly to the pot)
• 1/3 cup fresh basil leaves, packed
• 3 tablespoons raw cashews
• 1 tablespoon nutritional yeast (I find the soup tastes just as good without the yeast. And a teaspoon of Marmite or Vegemite would do the trick just as good. Or simply another one of granulated broth)
• additional salt & pepper, to taste

1. Set aside one of the zucchini; trim and coarsely chop the rest.
2. Cook onion in a large saucepan for about 5 minutes, until softened. Add the garlic and cook for another minute.
3. Stir in the chopped zucchini, salt, and pepper and cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally, for 5 minutes.
4. Add the broth and simmer until zucchini is tender, about 15 minutes.
5. Pour into a blender (in 2 batches, if necessary) taking care to avoid burns by not filling the blender more than halfway. 
6. Add the basil, cashews, and nutritional yeast and blend until smooth.
7. Return soup to the pot, season with salt and pepper to taste, and keep warm. 
8. Shred the remaining zucchini with a spiral slicer, mandolin, or grater. Pour soup into bowls and sprinkle grated zucchini over top.  (I also garnished the soup with some cashews and crushed pepper)

Enjoy!