Cacik (Cold Yogurt and Cucumber Soup)

Recipe by: Leslie Brenner

The idea behind this traditional Turkish soup is improbably simple: Whisk yogurt together with grated cucumber and herbs. It’s far more delicious than you’d think it would be, but I also love it because it’s most easily made without any heat, gas or electricity. Use a whisk rather than a blender, and hand grate a cucumber: It’s a soup for luddites.

The recipe is very basic, but you could also jazz it up by adding grated garlic, or a little finely chopped serrano chile or jalapeño.

Note: You can substitute Greek yogurt for the regular yogurt; if you do, use only 1 3/4 cups (414 ml), and whisk in 1/2 cup (118 ml) of ice water in Step 2.

Makes 2 - 3 servings.

Ingredients

• 2 cups (473 ml) plain yogurt

• 1 medium English cucumber, peeled, halved vertically and seeded

• 2 teaspoons white wine vinegar

• 1 teaspoon olive oil

• 1 tablespoon finely chopped mint leaves, plus additional leaves for garnish

• 1 teaspoon finely ch…