Lovers’ Soup
Hot summer days need something light and luscious. This lovers’ soup makes a light meal for two before lovemaking ora fine dessert for simply sitting in the candle glow afterward. Start with fresh-of-the-tree peaches, for love, and peel and dice them until you have about 3/5 cups. How many peaches depends on the size, but two medium-sized peaches should about right. Add the peaches and 1/2 cup of dry white wine to a medium saucepan. Next, for fertility and garden magic, add 1/5 cups white grape juice (preferably unsweetened). Add 1 whole stick of cinnamon (no longer than your index finger) for spirituality and love, and 1 cup of water. Bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and let it simmer for about half an hour while you and your lover enjoy a glass of white wine and a simmering discussion of how you plan to spend your evening, but no touching allowed! (yet)
After half an hour, take the saucepan off the burner. Add 1/2 teaspoon ground cardamom and 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract, both for love and lust. Stir twelve times. Remove the cinnamon stick from the saucepan, crumble it in your hand, and toss it into your herb garden as a blessing given back.
Using an electric blender or food processor, blend one third of the peach mixture until smooth and creamy. Repeat with the remaining thirds. Pour the mixture into a large bowl and refrigerate until thoroughly chilled. (If you’re in a big, big hurry, try pouring it into a large seal-able plastic bag and placing it in the freezer under careful watch.) Pour into two large soup bowls for you and your lover and serve with a green salad. You’ll have about four servings left over, which can be frozen and eaten as side dishes later in the year when fresh peaches are harder to find.
From Gifts for the Goddess on a Warm Spring Morn