Summer Garden Vegetable Soup
Creamy and delicious, full of zucchini, corn, tomatoes, and flavorful seasonings, this summer garden vegetable soup is hearty, healthy, and filling.
I wait all year long to make this soup – until I can pillage my own garden for the produce that fills this soup to brimming.
Of course, the year that my zucchini plants failed (who can kill a zucchini plant, really??), I hit up my local grocery store for the goods.
Creamy and delicious, full of tender zucchini, corn, bright tomatoes, and flavorful seasonings, like basil and oregano, this soup is so heartening and filling.
I tend to stay away from soups during the summer, but even on a warmer evening, this dreamy, healthful soup just hits the spot.
I served this with some of my favorite (and easy!) rolls and it was a perfect summer supper.
One Year Ago: Foil Packet Chicken with Snow Peas and Carrots
Two Years Ago: Cinnamon Rolls
Summer Garden Vegetable Soup
Ingredients
- 3 medium zucchini, chopped into bite-size pieces
- 4 medium tomatoes, chopped into bite-size pieces
- 2 tablespoons minced fresh parsley
- 1 teaspoon dried basil, or 1 tablespoon fresh basil, chopped
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 1 medium onion, chopped
- ¼ cup flour
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon pepper
- 3 cups low-sodium chicken broth
- 1 teaspoon lemon juice
- 1 (12-ounce) can evaporated milk (can use fat-free or low-fat)
- 1 ½ cups frozen or fresh corn kernels
- ¼ cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
Instructions
- In a large pot, melt the butter over medium heat. Add the zucchini, basil, parsley and onion and saute, stirring occasionally, for 2-3 minutes. Add the flour, salt and pepper and stir and cook for one minute. Gradually add the chicken broth, whisking or stirring constantly. Add the lemon juice; mix well.
- Bring the soup to a simmer, stirring to prevent sticking, and cook for 2-3 minutes, until the zucchini is tender but still has some bite to it (it will continue cooking for a few more minutes). Add the tomatoes, evaporated milk, and corn.
- Bring the soup to a boil and reduce the heat to medium-low. Cover the soup and simmer until the corn and zucchini are tender. Stir in the cheese just before serving.
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Recipe Source: slightly adapted from my wonderful friend, Jenna
So delicious. I tried this soup forceje first time in 2015 but just remembered it now as I’m trying to use all my zucchini. So delightful! Thanks mel:)
Great versatile recipe, I added shrimp and it was delicious. 🙂
Little did I know that I started preparation to make this soup back in April when we tilled our garden to prepare it for planting. Today I walked out to the garden, picked all the veggies needed for this recipe and Ta Da! The soup was glorious, and so fulfilling to my soul. Thank you for another winner!
45 minutes before dinner tonight I decided I wanted some sort of vegetable soup to go with it, so I googled “Mel’s kitchen cafe vegetable soup” and this was the first thing that came up and I had everything I needed to make it so I did! And it was so easy and so quick and so delicious! Thank you again and again for your wonderful site. It has changed my life!
Thank you so much, Kim!
I love this soup! Out of all the recipes on this site that are my regular go-to’s, this is one of my top 3. Super easy, delicious, and so healthy. I make it every summer, multiple times.
If I’m pressed for time, I shred the zucchini with my food processor and add it a little later. Not as delicious as the chunks, but still great.
Over the many times I’ve made it, I’ve subbed cream for the milk, cheddar for the Parmesan, non-dairy milks & cheese, and vegetable broth. While I always prefer the original recipe, no substitution has resulted in a bad soup!
I also freeze it, and I think it does better when freezing in smaller (1 – 1.5 cups) portions. The zucchini gets mushy if the chunks were large to begin with, but not enough to bother me. I’ve never had the frozen soup past 4 months.
Thank you for your super helpful review! Answered questions I didnt know I had!
This is so tasty and delicious! I did a couple substitutions to make it vegetarian, and I don’t think it compromises the integrity of the recipe. I’ll be making it again.
What did you substitute to make this vegetarian? I’m going to make this for a friend who had a new baby and eats vegetarian.
I tried this tonight, subbing almond milk for the evaporated milk and omitting the parm so it could be dairy free. This soup is so yummy! I was trying to figure out how big a “medium” zucchini is, but I guesstimated the total amount to add in and was happy with how it turned out. Thanks for another winning recipe!
Hi! This soup is delicious! Is it supposed to have oregano in it?
My family loves soup! So I’m always looking for an amazing soup recipe to add to our favorites and this is definitely one of them!!! It was so full of flavor and so delicious!!! Also looks beautiful in our bowls!
I don’t usually make soup during the summer, but this soup was sooooo good. I’ve been wanting to make it ever since I ate the last of it for lunch! It’s perfect for using up all of the garden produce! My zucchini and yellow squash plants died this year (squash bugs!). Good thing my mom’s garden is healthy and she likes to share! 🙂 thanks for another great recipe!
I love every recipe I have tried off this site! This soup is a staple in my house. We add spinach (fresh or frozen) and any other vege we have on hand. This recipe is a keeper! The colrs are beautiful
This is almost identical to the recipe I make but mine calls for 2 cups of shredded cheddar cheese! The cheddar cheese makes it taste like broccoli cheese soup! My son thought the recipe was broccoli cheese soup!!!
Any tips on subbing out the chicken stock? Would love to make this for my veggie bf!
I think you could easily sub in vegetable broth.
I’ve made it with veggie broth and it’s amazing!
Veggie broth works great too!
Holy moly. My family ate. this. up!! I couldn’t get over it! And from start to finish cooking in half an hour. AMAZING! My 7th grader asked to take some in his thermos for lunch today and I had a bowl at lunch, too. Now we’ll have to resort to gladiatorial combat to see who gets the one remaining bowl tomorrow. 🙂
Is there a substitute for fresh tomatoes? Or even to replace tomatoes completely?
Jessica – You could use canned diced tomatoes. I would just drain most of the juice out so the soup is not too thin.
I made this tonight. I added chopped celery, yellow squash, and sliced carrots. I also added an extra tablespoon of butter, along with more salt, and just a dash of garlic powder. I did not have fresh parsley, so I chopped fresh oregano, lemon balm, rosemary, and chives. IT WAS DELICIOUS!!!!! I will be cooking this again! Thanks for a great recipe.
In other words, you didn’t make this recipe, right? You made your own.
I have no experience freezing soups. Do you think this soup could be frozen? Thanks!
Heather – I think it’s definitely worth a try. The texture might change slightly but usually soups freeze pretty well (especially if they don’t have a lot of dairy products).
This was so quick and easy, I made it for lunch. I didn’t have evaporated milk, so I used cream. It was delicious!
I just made this. It was delicious. My broth wasn’t ready when I added the flour, so it browned and made the soup a funny color, but otherwise, it was the perfect summer soup. Thanks for having such a great site. I haven’t been disappointed in anything I’ve tried on here.
Oops….it’s been so warm here I forgot it was still March…..craziness!!!! Can’t wait to make this soup again ~
Hi Mel,
I am new to your website and absolutely love it. Although it’s not summer yet April is already pretty warm in Texas…..soooo I made your summer garden medley soup today. It’s delicious!!!! I had to have a second helping. Thank you for all your recipes and cooking tips…..very thankful to have found you ~ Melissa J.
I’ve never tried it that way, so I’m not sure, Jill.