Gazpacho - Cool Relief From the Heat

Another healthy way to use the garden's bounty! This is Ina Garten's recipe with a bit of a more traditional adapting. The gazpacho is very smooth, has the addition of a piece of artisan loaf that has had the crust removed and a wee bit of cumin as well as that Kosher salt and black pepper. The garnishes resemble a pico de gallo atop the bowl of soup ... cold crisp and the perfect start to a meal with a glass of cold Pinot Grigio on the side and tortilla crisps with guacamole.

It's too hot to cook here in New England. We've had a couple heatwaves come through and boy, are we wilting in the heat and humidity! Hence, fridge food ! Hope you're staying cool where ever you are !

Here's the Ina Garten Gazpacho recipe with my additions.

Gazpacho

Ingredients:

1 long seedless cucumber - coarsely chopped - 1/4 set aside for small dice garnish

2 sweet bell peppers (one red, one green) - seeded and coarsely chopped - 1/4 green set aside "

5 plum tomatoes - four coarsely chopped - 1 set aside "

1 red onion - peeled and copped - 1/4 set aside "

3 cloves garlic, peeled and chopped

3 c. tomato juice ( I used a can of tomato sauce with some water added to thin it a bit

1/4 c. sherry vinegar

1/4 c. olive oil

1 1/2 tsp. kosher salt

1 tsp. black pepper

1/4 tsp. ground cumin

1 thick slice artisan bread, crust removed and cut to cubes

Making the Gazpacho:

1. Wash and prep all the vegetables. Set aside the garnish dice in a bowl. Cover and refigerate.

2. Place the vegetables, handfuls at a time, in a blender and whiz to a perfectly smooth soup.

3. When the vegetables and garlic are blended smooth. Add the sherry vinegar, olive oil, spices, and continue whizzing to fully incorporate.

4. Place the cubes of bread into the soup and poke them to submerge them. leave them for several minutes to soften them well. Then whiz to fully incorporate.

5. Turn the soup into a large bowl and add the tomato juice. Whisk to thoroughly combine the base with the juice. 

6. Taste to correct the salt, pepper, and cumin flavours.

7. Cover the soup with wrap and refrigerate until thoroughly chilled.

8. To serve, ladle about a cup measure into chilled soup bowls and garnish with the reserved vegetables, a drizzle of olive oil, and perhaps a few red pepper flakes.

9. A nice accompaniment is tortilla chips and guacamole. Just sayin'

Note: Ina Garten does not puree her gazpacho, but leaves it with some form. She does not use bread or cumin in her recipe, but in my research, a regional recipe for gazpacho included both and recommended a smooth soup. I feel like I'm getting the best of both worlds here - Spain and Long Island cuisine.

I'm linking this post to this week's I Heart Cooking Club's July Potluck  ... head on over to the site and check out what everyone else is bringing to the party! Just click on the link below.

http://iheartcookingclubs.blogspot.com/2019/07/july-ihcc-potluck.html