06/11/2026
COLD CUCUMBER, AVOCADO & SHRIMP SOUP
Fresh cucumber, avocado, basil, and lime blended into a chilled summer soup and topped with poached shrimp.
June 11, 2012
Antique Gallery Office Kitchen
Interior Design Building, NYC
Facebook resurfaced this one in my memories today, and it couldn’t have appeared at a better time. With the heat and humidity we’ve been having this week, I’m reminded how much I loved making cold soups during the summer.
At the time, I was managing operations for a high-end antiques gallery in Manhattan’s Interior Design Building. We were a small operation, and with a constant flow of clients and designers coming through, there wasn’t much opportunity to leave for lunch. Truthfully, I preferred it that way. I didn’t have to spend money on an overpriced meal, and my boss covered the groceries.
In hindsight, that little gallery kitchen became my first real test kitchen. Working with minimal equipment and a tiny amount of space forced me to get creative. Every day was a chance to experiment, develop recipes, and figure out how to make something memorable for the staff from a very bare-bones setup.
This chilled cucumber and avocado soup topped with poached shrimp was one of my favorites—cool, light, refreshing, and exactly the kind of lunch that makes a sweltering New York summer a little more bearable.
Scroll right for the recipe.
