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The hot days have already arrived, summer is here, and it is time for us to change our daily food to summery and light dishes. Including more fruits and veggies, raw foods, and cold dishes would be great options for hot days.
For today's recipe, I have chosen a very easy soup: GAZPACHO
Gazpacho is like summer in a bowl. As tomato season begins, I am excited to prepare gazpacho to have on hand in the fridge for quick midday meals or pre-dinner appetizers.
Prep Time: 70 min Cook Time: 0min Serves: 4 Servings
WHAT IS GAZPACHO?
The cold soup known as gazpacho originates from the Andalusia region of southern Spain. The original version of the soup was created by blending stale bread, olive oil, and garlic with water. Any leftover vegetables were often added to the mix. The cooking process mainly involved crushing these ingredients with a mortar and pestle.
The simple soup has evolved over time into many different textures and flavors, but the most popular version became the tomato-based gazpacho. Traditionally, it is made from a mixture of pureed tomatoes and other ingredients such as cucumbers, sweet bell peppers, onions, garlic, and olive oil.
Tips to make the best Tomato Gazpacho
Use the sweetest, ripest tomatoes you can find for a tomato-based gazpacho. It's July, which means we can find delicious tomatoes this month.
To prepare tomatoes for making gazpacho, first remove the skin and seeds. For large tomatoes, start by cutting a small "x" in the stem end of each tomato. Then, place the tomatoes in boiling water for about 30 seconds. After that, transfer them to a bowl of cold water to make the skin easier to remove. To get rid of the seeds, cut the tomatoes in half and gently squeeze them to remove the seeds.
Use leftover bread to create a creamy soup. Traditionally, gazpacho includes bread to thicken the soup and prevent leftovers from separating if stored overnight.
For maximum flavor, marinate the ingredients beforehand. Toss together in a bowl with other ingredients and marinate in the refrigerator for 1 hour. This can also be done the day before for maximum flavor.
Although it is tempting to eat gazpacho immediately, it should be let rest in the fridge for an hour or more to develop flavors. Serve it ice-cold.
For extra flavor, texture, and appeal, garnish gazpacho with fresh herbs, olive oil, toasted nuts, or chopped vegetables or fruit right before serving.
GAZPACHO RECIPE
Gazpacho is the perfect summer soup. It's not even cooked, making it very fresh, healthy, and absolutely delicious.
It's my favorite soup for hot summer days. All the fresh ingredients are in season, and you don't need to heat up your stove or oven. Just prep the ingredients on a cutting board, then let your blender or food processor do the rest.
This soup is a must for the summer and is easy to prepare, refreshing, healthy, and delicious.
RECIPE
INGREDIENTS:
70g stale bread
700kg tomato, peeled and cores removed
100g Cucumber
70g Red bell pepper
1.5 Tbs red wine vinegar
40g Olive oil
50g Red onion
7g Salt
INSTRUCTION
Cut all vegetables and bread to roughly the same size. Toss together in a bowl with other ingredients and marinate refrigerated for 1 hour. This can also be done the day before to build maximum flavor.
Blend all ingredients together until they are mostly smooth. If you like it chunky, you can blend all the ingredients except the tomato, then pulse it in at the end.
Chill for at least 1 hour refrigerate and serve.
Garnish with your with your favorite vegetables.
If you make this recipe, please snap a photo and tag @andreea.plantbasedchef on Instagram! I would love it if you would leave a comment below.
Thanks so much!
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