Chilled corn soup

chilled corn soup with shrimp salad, originally uploaded by cabanagirl.

with shrimp salad
Cold soups are interesting. I always think of soups as a warming dish on a cold day but this summer the opposite works too. Last week I made gazpacho from my garden harvest....excellent burst of flavors.
I found this recipe in the Bon Appetit magazine August and thought I'd try it. The recipe called for lobster but I couldn't find it in Denver..certainly not live so I substituted Key West wild shrimp.
Although the soup looks really creamy it is dairy free. All of the flavors are extremely subtle and for a guest to try to detect the ingredients is a mystery to the senses. Try this with your summer corn. It is worth it:

Chilled corn soup with shrimp salad:
corn soup:
3 Tbsp unsalted butter
2 Tbsp olive oil
1 large onion, chopped
1 garlic clove, finely chopped
6 cups of corn kernels (6 ears)
2 sprigs thyme
salt, pepper

Shrimp Salad:
2 cups gently cooked shrimp, cut bite size
1/2 small shallot, finely chopped
2 tsp fresh lemon juice
1 tsp Dijon mustard
2 Tbsp good olive oil plus more for drizzling
fresh ground pepper
3 Tbsp celery LEAVES, coarsely chopped plus more for garnish
1 Tbsp fresh tarragon, coarsely chopped plus more for garnish
Sea salt

Saute onions and garlic in butter and oil until soft, about 5 minutes
Add corn and season with salt and pepper, cook until soft and almost brown, about 8 minutes
Add thyme sprigs and 5 cups of water, bring to boil, reduce heat and simmer until corn is very soft (6-8 mins).
Discard thyme sprigs
Transfer to blender and work in batches until all pureed
Force through sieve or strainer, separating the solids.
Chill liquid for 2 hours

Salad:

Whisk shallot, lemon juice and mustard in a bowl,
Whisk in olive oil
Season with salt and pepper
Add shrimp, celery leaves and tarragon
Chill for 2 hours

Assemble:
Pour soup into bowls
Add salad to soup
Sprinkle with celery leaves and tarragon
Drizzle with olive oil
Season with salt and pepper

Bon Appetit Froid!