9

Gazpacho – Chilled Summer Soup

tomato_gazpacho

Summertime is tomato time!

Take a stroll through a farmers market and you will easily find all the ingredients for gazpacho.

Gazpacho is a traditional Spanish chilled soup that is served in the summer months to highlight the harvest. Easy to make, and can be stored in the refrigerator for 2 days, the flavors truly enhance over a little time. Gazpacho can be a refreshing light dinner during our sweltering summer, serve with a lovely cheese platter and bread sticks. Enjoy!

Printer friendly

Gazpacho

7-8 medium red tomatoes
1 medium cucumber
4 garlic cloves
2 inches of a French baguette-remove crust
3 teaspoons chopped fresh basil
1/2 cups cold water
2 tablespoons sherry vinegar
6 tablespoons olive oil
2 teaspoons smoked paprika
1 tablespoon kosher salt
Pinch of ground cumin
Fresh ground black pepper
Red and green peppers for garnish (optional)

Soak bread in water for a few minutes, squeezing to dry and discard water.
Cut tomatoes into wedges. Peel, seed and dice the cucumbers. Mince garlic.
Combine all of the veggies with bread. Using an immersion blender, food processor, or regular old blender, blend until smooth, or the texture that you prefer. Pour through a sieve into a large bowl.

Add basil, oil, and vinegar and whisk until well mixed. Season with paprika, salt, cumin, and pepper.

Chill in fridge for at least three hours and then serve.

Andrea Charroin was a trained baker and pastry chef in San Francisco before she and her family moved to Redding 11 years ago. After falling in love with Redding’s downtown, Andrea and husband Westley opened a little pastry shop, Rene-Joule Patisserie, across from the Cascade Theatre. For the three years Rene-Joule was in business, it was renowned for making everything from scratch, using the best ingredients and keeping with a seasonal menu. To this day, Andrea is asked about her Marathon Bars, Orange Twists and sourdough bread.

Copyright 2009 Andrea R. Charroin. Visit her blog at bakerslove.typepad.com

Andrea Charroin

Andrea Charroin is a trained baker and pastry chef. She worked in San Francisco before she, her husband, Westley, and their two sons moved to Redding. They fell in love with Redding’s downtown and opened a little pastry shop, Rene-Joule Patisserie.

9 Comments
Newest
Oldest Most Voted
Inline Feedbacks
View all comments