Sunday, July 17, 2011

Tomato-Cucumber Gazpacho

Late last night found Michael and me chopping veggies that were still growing yesterday, and running them through the food processor to make a refreshing chilled Tomato-Cucumber Gazpacho.

Our Unitarian-Universalist church designates the third Sunday in each month "Soup Sunday" and when I sign up for it, I like to make my offering seasonal.

So what could be better during July then a cold soup made up of (mostly) locally sourced foods?  I was a little worried last night - that initial taste seemed a bit bland (this version doesn't include bell peppers, and I held the sliced jalepenos out for people to add if they like - not everyone there cares for spicy).  But after an overnight chill, the flavors have melded and the taste is refreshing and awesome.

Mind you - this is for folks that like cilantro.  I don't even know how it would work without it, or what could possibly replace it.



Farmer's Market Tomato-Cucumber Gazpacho
8 large fresh tomatoes, cored and quarters
(home grown or farmer's market - the grocery store tomatoes don't have enough flavor for this)
3-4 large fresh cucumbers, peeled, seeded, cut into chunks
4 ears of fresh corn
1 large onion, diced
1 cup loosely packed fresh cilantro leaves
2 cups ice cubes
Juice of 3 limes
adobo sauce from 1 small can of chipotles
(the chipotles can be put in a freezer safe container and frozen for future use)
Sea salt and fresh ground pepper to taste
3 fresh jalepenos, cored and sliced

Run tomatoes, cucumbers through food processor until coursely chopped - this will be very liquidy, but shouldn't be pureed.  I did this in batches, turning it all into a large aluminum bowl. Add corn and diced onion to bowl.  Run cilantro leaves through food processor to finely chop and add to bowl.  Run ice through food processor to 'slushy' consistency - side effect of this is that it will pick up all the bits of cilantro still in the container, creating a tasty cilantro 'gratina'.  Add ice to bowl.  Mix in adobo sauce and salt and pepper to taste.


At this point, I put the jalepenos in a small container (if you like, you can just add them to the gazpacho, making it more spicy than my version) and transfered the gazpacho into a sealable container for transport.  Either way, let this chill overnight or at least a few hours - the flavors meld beautifully.

If this were for at home, I'd want to chop some avocado to top the soup with, along with the jalepeno slices.

Update:  It was finished off quickly - the adobo sauce gives it just a bit of spicy zest, while the sliced jalepenos ramped the heat up to something wonderful. Without either, this would be cooling and vibrant - this tastes like summer.

Shared with:
Show and Share Day, Weekend Wander, Weekend Wrap Up Party, Whatcha Got Weekend, Check Me Out Saturday, Saturday Nite Special, Show and Tell Saturday, Not "Baaaad" Sundays, Sundae Scoop Link Party, Sunday Showcase, Think Pink Sunday, Show and Share Sunday, Mangia Monday, Mouthwatering Monday, Just Another Meatless Monday, Midnight Maniac Meatless Mondays, Monday Mania, My Meatless Monday, You're So Very Creative Monday, Market Yourself Monday, Mad Skills Monday, Amaze Me Monday, Craft-O-Maniac Monday, Motivated Monday, Motivate Me Monday, Making the World Cuter Monday, Making Monday Marvelous, Made By You Monday, Mad Skills Monday, Made with Love Monday, Homemaker Monday, Tuesdays at the Table, Tempt My Tummy Tuesday, Made From Scratch Tuesday, Tuesday's Tasty Tidbits, Your Recipe My Kitchen, Tasty Tuesdays, Tasty Tuesday, Hearth & Soul Blog Hop, Traditional Tuesdays, Get Your Craft On Tuesday, Glitter Link Party, What's on the Menu Wednesday, What's On Your Plate?, Real Food Wednesday, Works For Me Wednesday, Full Plate Thursday, Simple Lives Thursday, Pennywise Platter, Frugal Food Thursday.

10 comments:

  1. Lynda, thanks for the scrumptious recipe...
    I am inviting you to join our linking parties going on every week starting on wednesdays at
    http://www.passionatelyartistic.com/2011/07/flower-tutorial-with-linking-party-on.html
    Have a fabulous week,
    Maggie
    http://passionatelyartistic.com

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  2. It looks very wonderful. Thank you for the recipe.

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  3. sounds great come over and visit me at http://shopannies.blogspot.com

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  4. What a perfect recipe for this time of year when everything can be fresh. Thanks so much for linking this up to Motivated Monday at BeColorful. I know the readers will be making a note of it. I hope you will visit again.
    Pam

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  5. This is kinda like a salsa soup.... yum! I'd love to invite you to a recently new link up called Healthy 2day Wednesdays for sharing ideas, tips, recipes, going "green" ideas, natural remedies, etc. I'd love for you to add this post!

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  6. A LOT like a salsa soup! Tanks for the invite!

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  7. This looks perfect for this weather. I am featuring it tomorrow at My Meatless Mondays. I have not made gazpacho yet, this year and I love the idea of the added cucumber.

    Come over to my sister blog, tomorrow, and see your soup. http://sweetsav.blogspot.com
    Feel free to continue to feed us with wonderful recipes.

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  8. This is a great classic Gazpacho, perfect for this horrible heat that we are having. Thank you so much for sharing with Full Plate Thursday and hope you will come back again real soon. Have a great week!
    Miz Helen

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