11 Fresh Soups to Make for Spring

Asparagus Vichyssoise

This creamy soup is best the next day, after the flavors have blended; season it generously before serving.

Chilled Spring Pea Soup

Daniel Boulud puts this deliciously light and clean-tasting soup—a mix of sweet peas, favas, pea shoots, snap peas and snow peas—on the menu each spring. To make the dish even easier, skip the labor-intensive fresh favas, as well as the snow peas and pea shoots. Instead, just use sugar snaps and frozen baby peas.

• Great Recipes for Spring Produce

Spring Vegetable Soup with Tarragon

This light soup is laden with nutrient-dense root vegetables like potatoes (vitamin C), carrots (beta-carotene) and onions (chromium, which helps maintain blood sugar levels). In the summer, Stéphane Vivier purees the soup and serves it chilled with the freshest herbs he can find.

Zucchini-and-Watercress Soup

Sophie Dahl likes eating peppery watercress in the spring and has figured out a way to highlight its bright flavor in this silky soup. A single tablespoon of cream gives the vivid green soup a touch of richness.

Spicy Avocado-Cucumber Soup

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.

Vegetable Soup with Fennel, Herbs and Parmesan Broth

Antioxidant-rich fennel is one of several good-for-you ingredients in this wonderful soup. Viana La Place simmers Parmigiano-Reggiano rinds in the broth to give it a rich, cheesy flavor.

Chilled English Pea Soup with Crab and Meyer Lemon

This refreshing, verdant English pea and watercress soup is the perfect base for a zesty crab salad. Chef Sarah Heller folds sweet Dungeness crab with Meyer lemon, crème fraîche, and a host of delicate spring herbs before mounding atop each serving of the soup.

Lemony Roasted Asparagus Soup

Chef Cassie Piuma prepares her version of the lemony Greek soup avgolemono with a broth made from asparagus trimmings. Her other unconventional additions include roasted asparagus and oyster mushrooms.

Asparagus Soup with Parmesan Shortbread Coins

"I adore savory cheese cookies with creamy asparagus soup," says Carla Hall. "Both are dead simple to make."

Chicken-Orzo Soup with 10 Vegetables

Any combination of vegetables will work in this nutritious soup from chef Hugh Acheson. If including 10 vegetables isn't a priority, you can also cut some and double up on others.

Creamy Spinach Soup with Dill

This soup, adapted from The Nordic Cookbook, has the rich flavor of creamed spinach but a much lighter texture.