Recipe: Gazpacho

Gazpacho, a cold tomato-based soup, is the perfect summer dish.  It beautifully showcases farm-fresh ingredients including peppers, onions, cucumers, and garlic.  There's no cooking or baking, so making it doesn't heat up the kitchen.  And since it's served cold, it's a light meal that never fails to be refreshing. 

Unfortunately, there is no substitute for tomatoes in this recipe, so if your tomato supply has been decimated by late blight, you may have to wait till next season to try your hand at gazpacho.

Gazpacho

Ingredients

• 2 cucumbers
• 2 red peppers
• 4 medium-sized tomatoes
• 2 cloves of garlic
• 2 cups tomato juice
• 1/3 cup sherry vinegar
• salt and pepper

Directions

1. Dice the tomatoes, seeds and all, and put them in a large bowl.
2. Seed the peppers, dice them, and add them to the bowl.
3. Peel one cucumber and clean the other.  Remove the seeds from both by cutting them down the center and using a spoon to scrape the seeds out.  Dice both cucumbers and add them to the bowl.
4. Press or finely dice the garlic and add it to the bowl, along with the tomato juice, vinegar, and salt and pepper to taste.
5. Transfer half of the mixture to a blender and puree.  (Add a handful of ice cubes to the blender if you plan to serve the gazpacho immediately and want it cold.)  Return to bowl and mix well.  Adjust seasonings to taste.

While it's fine to serve gazpacho right away, its flavors will develop in the refrigerator overnight.  It's extra-delicious served with a dense, crusty bread for sopping up the soup, or topped with a drizzle of good olive oil.