Stay cool as a cucumber with Ellie Krieger's no-cook soup.

Week three of our season-long garden party Summer Fest 2011 welcomes food and garden bloggers to feature garden-to-table recipes and tips. We’ll help you to enjoy all that this season has to offer. So far, we’ve delved into eggplant and peaches. This week we’re getting creative with: cucumbers.

With temperatures reaching 90 degrees in many areas of the country, it’s just too hot to cook. But it’s never too hot to eat right, so mercury rising is no excuse to roll through the drive-through. Ellie Krieger’s Cool Cucumber Soup is just the solution. It’s perfect for the height of summer because:

• You won’t need to turn on the oven or stove to make it.
• It’s done in 20 minutes.
• It’s a great way to use up the cucumbers growing like crazy in the garden.
• It clocks in at just 130 calories and 2.5 grams of fat, so makes a waistline-friendly light lunch or appetizer.
• Per Ellie, it’s a good source of protein, Vitamin A, Vitamin C and calcium.

What are you waiting for? Get out the blender and whip up this super-cool, creamy-yet-good-for you cold soup.

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Plums in many colors.

Finally…plum season has arrived! This juicy stone fruit is only in season a short period of time. Be sure to enjoy it while it lasts.

What, Where, When
The plum (Prunus domestica, Rosaceae) belongs to the rose family with cherries, peaches, and apricots. There are hundreds of plum varieties grown throughout the world. Common varieties include French, Italian, Imperial, Greengage, Long John, Castelton, and Fellenburg.

Plums grow on trees in clusters, have smooth skin and a pit in the center. Plums can be oval or round in shape. The skin can be deep purple, red, green, blue, or multicolored. The flesh can be orange, red, purple, yellow, or white. Plums also vary in taste—some are sweet while others are tart. They’re available from July through October.

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