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It’s summertime and the living is easy, but it’s also hot, and the heat is busy sucking away my will to live. It’s days like these that I turn to a time-honored favorite summer staple: fruit soup. I always loved fruit soup because it felt like the kind of thing a fairy might eat out of a flower. This is a light, colorful, natural way to liquefy the spirit of summer and drink it, especially when you’re suffering while roasting in the sun.

This recipe, like all recipes, is open to interpretation. Let the sweetness of it revive you, let the tartness of certain fruits (looking at you, strawberries!) remind you that this heat wave isn’t forever, and use this as an opportunity to offload all your sort of mushy fruits that have been languishing in the back of your fridge.

Prep time: 5-7 minutes

Cook time: A neat 15 minutes, give or take some.

This recipe will serve 2 ravenous, overheated people, or 4 moderately hungry people.

Ingredients:

Strawberries! Cherries! Bananas! Plums! Use whatever fruit strikes your fancy for this one. I like to use 4 to 5 cups of whatever fruit I have on hand.

Water. I like to use half as much water as there is fruit. I know we hate math down here at the Food vertical, but 4 cups fruit = 2 cups water is all the number wizardry I am capable of currently.

You’re going to want to keep sugar on hand, to stir in as you taste and add for flavor. I always end up using about a cup. You only live once!

The final ingredient is cornstarch or flour. You’ll only need about 1-2 teaspoons. This is to thicken the mixture. Flour might not be as glossy as cornstarch, but it does the job in a pinch.

Instructions:

1. Mix all the fruit in a blender. Grind until it’s reached a consistency you can eat with a spoon. Mix in the water.

2. The mixture should be a colorful blend. Pour it in a soup pot.

3. With the flame on low, let it simmer for 10-15 minutes and stir in the sugar with the cooking utensil of your choice.

4. After 15 minutes, remove from flame and stir in your cornstarch.

5. Refrigerate until cold to the touch. To speed up the process, stuff it in the freezer. For extra presentation points, you can garnish with a sprinkle of chia seeds, or a sprig of mint, a cinnamon stick, an orange peel or a few gently sliced spare strawberries.

6. Feast! Ideally while watching fireworks.

Shira Feder is a recipe writer for the common man. She’s reachable at [email protected]

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