Gazpacho

Spanish Gazpacho is one of the best ways to use your farmers' market tomatoes. Blend 'em with fresh veggies, olive oil, and some vinegar, and you've got yourself a sweet, tangy, smooth summer soup.

Course Appetizer, Soup

Cuisine spanish

Prep Time 20

Chilling time 2

Total Time 2 20

Servings servings

Calories 88

Author Jessica Hylton

Ingredients

For the Soup

2 pounds ripe tomatoes cored and roughly chopped, 900g
1 English cucumber peeled and roughly chopped, 280g
1 medium red bell pepper seeded and roughly chopped, 170g
½ small red onion roughly chopped, 70g
2 cloves garlic peeled, 6g
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil 30ml
2 tablespoons red wine vinegar 30ml
1 teaspoon fine sea salt or to taste, 6g
¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper 0.5g
¼ teaspoon ground cumin optional, 0.5g
2 –4 tablespoons cold water as needed, 30–60ml

Optional Garnishes

½ cup diced cucumber 75g
2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley or basil 8g
Extra virgin olive oil for drizzling
Freshly ground black pepper to taste
Crusty bread or toasted sourdough for serving

Instructions

Core the tomatoes and roughly chop them into pieces that will fit easily into your blender.
Peel and roughly chop the cucumber. Remove the stem and seeds from the bell pepper, then roughly chop it. Roughly chop the red onion and peel the garlic cloves.
Add the tomatoes, cucumber, red bell pepper, red onion, garlic, olive oil, red wine vinegar, salt, black pepper, cumin (if using), and 30ml (2 tablespoons) of cold water to a high-speed blender.
Blend on high for 1–2 minutes, or until completely smooth, stopping to scrape down the sides if needed.
If you prefer a thinner gazpacho, blend in the remaining cold water, 1 tablespoon at a time, until you reach your desired consistency.
Pour the gazpacho into a covered container and refrigerate for at least 2 hours, or until thoroughly chilled.
Stir well before serving. Taste and adjust with additional salt, black pepper, or a splash of red wine vinegar if needed.
Ladle into bowls or glasses and garnish with diced cucumber, chopped parsley or basil, a drizzle of olive oil, and freshly ground black pepper. Serve with crusty bread or toasted sourdough, if desired.

Notes

Fresh, fresh, fresh. Use very ripe, in-season tomatoes for the sweetest, most flavourful gazpacho. Same with all the other veggies.
Scrape the sides of the blender. Scrape down the sides of the blender a couple of times to make sure everything makes it into the soup.
Don't skip the chill. Chill the gazpacho for at least 2 hours so the flavours get a chance to develop.
Storage. Seal leftovers in an airtight container and store in the fridge for up to 3 days or in the freezer for up to 3 months. Thaw in the fridge (if applicable) and blend before serving. If the soup never went in the freezer, you can just give it a good stir.

Nutrition