This gazpacho is the epitome of summer: loads of fresh vegetables whirred together in a blink and served chilled. No hot ovens or stove tops, no extended prep or cooking times, and lots of fresh cool goodness to slurp.
The original recipe called for tons of basil (which I didn’t have) and a whole green pepper. I like bell peppers when eaten raw and used as a vehicle to deliver some sort of delicious dip. Cooked (or in this case, merely mixed) with my food, not so much. So I toned it down to half a pepper, and would probably omit it altogether next time. Amelia also used stale bread and crushed some ice in her gazpacho before serving; my bread was fresh and I didn’t want my soup any colder than it already was so I nixed the ice. Also worth noting, two garlic cloves is a lot when consuming them raw. If you’re not into a garlicky soup, I advise cutting back. Lastly, she uses toasted walnuts; I subbed wasabi-flavored almonds that I had on hand. I think many nuts would go nicely with this soup, like cashews or pistachios.
Play with it.
Ingredients:
½ small green bell pepper, seeded and chopped
1 large cucumber, chopped
1 slice of stale white bread
½ jalapeno, somewhat seeded
2 garlic cloves
1-inch segment of ginger
¾ cup lightly toasted nuts of your choice
3 cups baby spinach
2 large pieces of kale, stalks removed and leaves torn
2 tablespoons of mint
2 tablespoons of white wine vinegar
½ cup extra virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons Greek yogurt
juice of half a lemon
1 cup water
salt and pepper to taste
Directions:
Roughly chop the bell pepper, cucumber, jalapeno, garlic, and ginger. Place in a food processor and add the nuts, mint, vinegar, oil, yogurt, and most of the water. Process until everything is evenly chopped. Add spinach, kale, and remaining water and incorporate.
(Note: Amelia uses a blender from start to finish, but is forced to make her soup in batches. Mine came together in a blink in a food processor, but then I blended it to make it totally smooth. It seems the extra step, whether in two machines or one, is unavoidable.)
Transfer to blender and blend in yogurt, lemon juice, and salt. As I learned in cooking class, keep blending even after you think it’s done. There’s no such thing as soup that is too smooth. Blend, blend, blend — this is when the annoying small bits are pulverized. Taste and adjust seasoning as needed.
Serve immediately with a drizzle of olive oil and cheese of your choice. I used freshly grated manchego, but parmesan or feta would be nice complements as well.
Recipe adapted from Bon Appetémpt
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foxandbunny posted this
