Gazpacho – Garden Goodness!

Gazpacho bursting with vine-ripened tomatoes, cucumbers, peppers and basil.

Gazpacho – Garden Goodness!

Great to Have Friends with a Garden!

We recently visited our friends Mark and Diana, who are accomplished vegetable gardeners. They have a garden in their rural backyard, that comes close to resembling a small commercial farm.  Fortunately, they are also very generous friends. We were laden with all kinds of veggie goodness by the time we left; peppers, cucumbers, sweet corn, garlic, shallots and of course, tomatoes.

As I contemplated ways to enjoy all this fresh produce, I remembered my recent hankering for gazpacho. Checking my recipe against our bountiful inventory, I realized I had everything I needed to whip up a batch. Yeah!

Chilled tomato soup may be an acquired taste for some people. However, If you like salsa, you should give it a try. Essentially the two are very similar. The main difference for gazpacho, is the crunchy, refreshing cucumber, a few additional seasonings, and a more soup-like consistency.

Healthy Never Tasted So Good

After a series of posts focused on more indulgent recipes, I felt it was time to balance things out with something a little healthier. Great news! You get the best of both worlds with this recipe.  It is low in calories and carbohydrates and the tomatoes provide a great source of vitamin C. You also get big flavor from vegetables and herbs used at the peak of their season. Healthy never tasted this good!

Gazpacho

Gazpacho, a chilled summer soup, provides flavorful garden goodness from ripe tomatoes, roasted peppers, cucumbers and basil.

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Course: Soup

Cuisine: Spanish

Keyword: basil, chilled soup, cucumbers, Red Pepper, tomatoes

Prep Time: 20 minutes minutes

Chill Time: 3 hours hours

Total Time: 3 hours hours 20 minutes minutes

Servings: 4

Ingredients

• 3 cups chopped ripe tomato about 1 1/2 lbs.
• 1/3 cup finely chopped red onion rinse with hot water for about 20 seconds in a strainer if it smells strong
• 3 large basil leaves
• 1 clove minced garlic
• 1 cup finely chopped peeled cucumber, divided
• 1 1/2 cups tomato juice
• 1/2 cup finely chopped roasted red bell peppers
• 3 tablespoons red wine vinegar
• 2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
• 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil + more for drizzling if desired
• 3/4 – 1 teaspoon kosher teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 4 teaspoons chopped Italian flat leaf parsley

Instructions

• Combine first 4 ingredients in a food processor, add 3/4 cup of cucumber. Pulse 5-8 times or until coarsely pureed.
• Combine the pureed tomato mixture, juice, and the next 6 ingredients (juice through black pepper); stir well. Cover and refrigerate 3 hours or until chilled.
• Fill individual bowls with gazpacho, sprinkle each bowl with some of the remaining 1/4 cup chopped cucumber and parsley. Drizzle individual servings with a little additional olive oil, if desired. Can store soup in refrigerator up to 2 days. Stir and sprinkle with cucumber and parsley before serving.