Chilled soups are light, flavorful, refreshing and Seriously Simple to prepare. They can be made well in advance to allow them to chill properly. This means that you can prepare your soup early in the day (when it’s cooler in the kitchen) or even the day before, a real boon to the summer cook. And best of all, these soups cool us off when the temperatures are crazy hot.

This bright soup tastes like pure summertime with its fresh just-picked corn, golden yellow sweet peppers, and yellow cherry tomatoes. Yellow tomatoes are sweeter and less acidic than their red cousins. If you can’t find yellow tomatoes, use the red variety and sweet red peppers for an equally delicious variation.

I like to garnish a soup with an interesting topping. Feel free to decorate as you wish. Try corn kernels or chopped tomatoes on top. Some chopped green basil leaves on top add a pretty contrast. Remember to adjust the seasonings of the soup once it has been chilled. Cold soups usually need more seasoning since the chilling process reduces the flavor.

Sunny Summer Soup

Serves 6 to 8

2 cups fresh corn kernels (about 4 medium ears)

1-pint yellow cherry tomatoes or 1 large yellow tomato, stemmed and coarsely chopped

1 sweet yellow pepper, seeded and diced into 1/2-inch pieces

3 tablespoons olive oil

6 scallions, white and light green part only, finely chopped

6 cups chicken or vegetable stock

6 basil leaves

1/4 cup whipping or heavy cream

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

1 teaspoon hot pepper oil

To garnish:

1/2 cup sour cream

Extra basil leaves, finely chopped; add just before serving to avoid darkening

1. Reserve 1/4 cup corn, 2 tablespoons diced yellow pepper and 1/4 cup tomatoes. Immerse the reserved corn and yellow pepper in a saucepan of boiling water for about 2 minutes. Drain, chill, and reserve with the tomatoes.

2. Heat olive oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add scallions and saute until slightly soft, about 3 minutes. Add the remaining tomatoes, yellow peppers, and corn to the pan and saute for about 3 minutes. Add chicken stock and basil; bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer slowly, uncovered, for about 10 minutes. Remove the basil leaves.

3. Puree the soup in the pan with a hand blender or in batches in a blender or food processor fitted with a steel blade. Transfer to a bowl. (For a smooth consistency if desired, pass through a food mill or strainer into a bowl, pushing down to get all the essence.) Add the cream, seasonings, and hot pepper oil. Taste for seasoning. Chill for at least three hours.

4. To serve: Pour the soup into bowls and garnish with sour cream, tomatoes, yellow pepper, corn, and chopped basil.

(Diane Rossen Worthington is an authority on new American cooking. She is the author of 18 cookbooks, including “Seriously Simple Parties,” and a James Beard Award-winning radio show host. You can contact her at www.seriouslysimple.com.)

©2026 Diane Rossen Worthington. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.