Chilled Cantaloupe and Berry Soup with Mint

There are days inside AIP when the last thing you want is heat, in the kitchen or in the bowl, and the effort has to be almost nothing. This soup asks for a blender and an hour in the fridge. That is the whole job.

Cantaloupe carries potassium, the mineral your muscles and nerves lean on to keep firing correctly, and raspberries bring polyphenols, plant compounds studied for supporting a healthy gut community, on the lower end of the fruit bowl for sugar. The ginger and mint keep a fruit soup from tasting like dessert with a spoon.

This is whole fruit, blended and chilled, nothing manufactured in it. Pour it into a bowl instead of drinking it from the blender jar, scatter the mint over the top, and notice the color before the first spoonful. A little care in how it is served changes how it lands.

Ingredients

• 4 cups chopped cantaloupe
• 1.5 cups raspberries (or strawberries)
• 1/2 cup orange juice
• 1/4 cup white grape juice
• 2 tablespoons lime juice
• 1 teaspoon fresh ginger, chopped
• 2 tablespoons fresh mint, chopped

Note on swaps: every ingredient here is AIP Core compliant as written. The source notes strawberries work in place of raspberries if you prefer.

Method

• Add the cantaloupe, raspberries, orange juice, white grape juice, lime juice, and ginger to a blender. Hold back the mint for now.
• Blend until completely smooth.
• Chill in the fridge for at least an hour, until cold.
• Pour into bowls and scatter the chopped mint over the top to serve.

*Adapted from acleanplate.com*

*Lower-sugar note: the sugar here is the melon, not added sweetener. For a lighter serving, use a smaller portion, or blend in a splash of water or coconut milk to stretch the batch so each serving carries less.*