Red Garden Gazpacho

Nothing is fresher than garden gazpacho. When you make this cold soup you can essentially serve up the summer farmer’s market in a cup! As nice as it would be to enjoy this soup all year long, gazpacho really deserves to be saved for when the tomatoes are locally grown and dripping from the vines. Gazpacho is a great afternoon pick-me-up or first course for a summer meal. My husband and I used to debate over which mom made the better gazpacho. I later learned that I could simplify their recipes a bit and we liked our version even better (Moms, please don’t stop making your gazpachos—we really do love them!)

I usually double this recipe because gazpacho does well in the fridge for a few days and always gets polished off. Try this soup topped with creamy avocado to complement the spice, or imagine eating it in a Spanish fishing village and top it with fresh crabmeat. We usually serve gazpacho in a cup and just drink it down.

INGREDIENTS:

SERVES 4 - 6

• 1/3 cup sweet onion, chopped

• 1 small clove garlic, coarsely chopped

• 3 cups quartered tomatoes(about 3 to 5 tomatoes)

• 1 large cucumber—peeled, seeded and chopped (about 1½ cups)

• 1 red or green bell pepper, seeded and chopped

• 5 to 10 basil leaves (optional)

• 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar

• 1¼ teaspoons salt

• ½ teaspoon freshly ground pepper, plus more for seasoning

• Pinch cayenne, plus more for serving(optional)

• 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil Optional, for serving

• Hot sauce

• 1 large avocado—halved, pitted, peeled and sliced

• 1 cup fresh or canned crabmeat, drained

• Toasted crusty bread

DIRECTIONS:

1 In a food processor, pulse the onion and garlic until minced. Add the tomatoes, cucumber, bell pepper, basil leaves (if using), vinegar, salt,½ teaspoon pepper and the cayenne. Pulse about 30 times, until you achieve a chunky soup consistency. Add the olive oil and pulse a few more times to mix it through.

2 Transfer the soup to a container, cover and chill for several hours or overnight to allow the garlic and onion to mellow out and the flavors to mingle.

3 To serve, ladle the gazpacho into cups or bowls. If you like a little more heat, add another pinch of cayenne or a dash of hot sauce. If desired, garnish with the avocado and/or crab and add a few pieces of toasted bread to the cold soup.

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