Pureed Zucchini Soup With Curry

• 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
• 1 small onion, chopped
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 2 pounds zucchini, diced (about 7 cups diced)
• 2 teaspoons curry powder
• 6 cups chicken stock, vegetable stock or water
• 1/4 cup basmati rice
• Salt to taste
• Freshly ground pepper (I like a lot of it in this soup)
• Pinch of cayenne
• 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
• 2 tablespoons chopped chives
• 1 small zucchini, sliced paper-thin, tossed with salt and, if desired, lemon juice, and marinated for 15 minutes or longer
• Garlic croutons (optional)

1. Heat the olive oil over medium heat in a large, heavy soup pot and add the onion.
2. Cook, stirring, until it is tender, about 5 minutes.
3. Add a generous pinch of salt, the garlic and the zucchini and stir for about a minute, until the garlic smells fragrant.
4. Add the curry powder, stir together, and add the stock or water, the rice and salt to taste.
5. Bring to a boil, reduce the heat, cover and simmer 30 minutes.
6. Taste and adjust salt.
7. Puree the soup with an immersion blender or a food mill or in batches in a blender, taking care to remove the lid or take out the center insert and to cover with a towel to avoid hot splashes.
8. Return to the pot, heat through, add pepper and cayenne to taste and stir in the lemon juice.
9. Serve, garnishing each bowl with paper-thin slices of zucchini, chopped chives and croutons if desired.

extra virgin olive oil, onion, garlic, zucchini, curry powder, chicken stock, basmati rice, salt, freshly ground pepper, cayenne, lemon juice, chives, zucchini, garlic

Taken from cooking.nytimes.com/recipes/12547 (may not work)