16 Surprisingly Creamy (But Totally Creamless) Soups

To turn this tangy and refreshing yogurt-based soup into a terrific light meal, simply add poached shrimp.

Recipe: Tangy Cucumber Soup

The secret to this speedy soup is buying ingredients with lots of built-in flavor, like hummus and jarred piquillo peppers.

Recipe: Creamy Piquillo Pepper Chickpea Soup

Han Feng lightly flavors this silky, creamy soup with Ceylon tea, garnishing it with a drizzle of roasted pumpkinseed oil. She always restocks her supply of the lovely, nutty oil whenever she's in New York.

Recipe: Tea-Scented Pumpkin Soup

To make this healthy soup especially tasty, Naomi Pomeroy cooks the carrots with Madras curry powder, ginger, and garlic. Before serving, she adds a little bit of Tabasco sauce and a drizzle of tarragon-infused oil.

Recipe: Curried Carrot Soup with Tarragon Oil

This tangy, luscious soup is an excellent make-ahead dish: Simply puree everything except the garnish, then chill. For a milder version, scale back on the serrano.

Recipe: Spicy Avocado-Cucumber Soup

Red-orange kuri squash has a pumpkin shape, but no ridges. Its flavor is sweet and nutty, reminiscent of chestnuts.

Recipe: Red Kuri Squash Soup

The Good News: Not only is yellow corn a good source of vitamin B, magnesium, and thiamin, it also contains carotenoids (organic pigments with health benefits) not found in white corn. Ani Phyo likes to add a handful of vitamin A–rich spinach or soft lettuce to the chowder. "Then it becomes part-soup, part-salad," she says.

Recipe: Raw Corn Chowder

This silky soup gets its smoky sweetness from pureed chipotle peppers, a Mexican staple, and the surprising addition of apples. "This is real comfort food for me," Sue Torres says. "I love that it's creamy without containing any cream."

Recipe: Sweet Potato Chipotle Apple Soup

SoupCycle in Portland, Oregon, offers soups with wacky names ranging from Flemish Farm (a vegan take on French onion soup) to Who Framed Ginger Rabbit (carrot soup with ginger). Owners Jed Lazar and Shauna Lambert call this lentil soup Pot of For Goodness Sake! because the ingredients are so healthy.

Recipe: Red Lentil Soup

"Carrots and curry were born for each other and Michael Voltaggio's cold carrot salad with Thai flavors at Ink., in Los Angeles, is so superbly crafted that I thought about it for days after trying it. At home I don't do anything with liquid nitrogen or as many bells and whistles as Michael does in his restaurant, nor should you. That's the joy of dining out, to see what great chefs can do. On the home front, I love taking that inspiration and creating dishes like this one." — Andrew Zimmern

Recipe: Cream of Carrot Soup with Ginger Curry

Chickpeas are rich in both types of dietary fiber, which are important for maintaining heart health and for stabilizing blood sugar levels. Pam Anderson uses them as the base for this Indian-flavored creamy (though cream-free) soup, which she prepares by first pureeing it, then simmering it, to save time. "Pureed beans give you richness without having to enrich the soup," she says.

Recipe: Chickpea Soup

This silky potato soup is perked up with Turkish red-pepper paste (biber salcasi), made from sweet and hot peppers. Look for the paste at Middle Eastern groceries, or use harissa instead.>

Recipe: Potato Soup with Spicy Shrimp

Here's a silky soup that doesn't rely on cream for its creamy texture; pureed avocados do the job nicely. It doesn't rely on long cooking for its full flavor, either — the soup's in the pot for less than 10 minutes.

Recipe: Chicken and Avocado Soup with Fried Tortillas

Julianne Jones makes this lovely, luscious soup simply by pureeing celeriac (celery root) with celery and vegetable stock — there's no cream. For an equally delightful chilled version, Jones recommends thinning the soup with a little more stock.

Recipe: Celeriac Soup

Chef Annie Somerville thickens and enriches her fragrant cauliflower soup with unsweetened coconut milk. The thinly sliced jalapeño served on top adds a bright, fresh heat that's delicious with the warm curry spices and sweet roasted cauliflower.

Recipe: Curried Cauliflower Soup with Coconut and Chiles

Avgolemono is a classic sauce of chicken broth, egg yolks, and lemon juice; the addition of a bit more chicken broth, rice, and shredded chicken turns it into a satisfying soup.

Recipe: Avgolemono Chicken Soup with Rice

For more tempting recipes check out Food & Wine:

Healthy and Delicious Soups

Fantastic Warming Soups

Comforting Chicken Soups