Vegan Recipe: Gazpacho

by Teresa.

My first recipe is a favorite in my house and among friends, especially because we can get such wonderful produce year round in Florida. It’s the time of year when we plant our winter gardens, which means, of course, tomatoes. There is nothing quite like the flavor of a homegrown tomato. And there is nothing like gazpacho, one of my favorite summer soups, made from homegrown tomatoes.

Gazpacho originally comes from Spain and is traditionally served cold. I’ve tried a lot of different gazpachos in my day, and none of them come close to the authentic original gazpacho recipe. Many restaurants serve gazpacho, and I’ve seen it in just about every color, texture, and taste imaginable.  Having lived in and learned the recipe in Spain, I’m a gazpacho purist, and in my opinion, there really is only one gazpacho.

I made this recipe for my friends at a tapas party I hosted, and you can see some of the other tapas dishes that I made here. Today we’re just going to focus on the gazpacho, because to me, there’s only one way to get it right. No variations, no frills. Just pure tomato simplicity.

What you will need:

• 6-8 medium to large tomatoes, peeled and seeded (choose your favorite variety. I like the vine ripened tomatoes, but if you can get home grown tomatoes or, organic tomatoes from a local co-op, even better. This probably comes out to about 1 ½ to 2 pounds of tomatoes. Make sure your blender can accommodate the quantity). You can puree in batches.
• 1 green bell pepper, cored, peeled, and seeded
• 1 cucumber, peeled and seeded  Note: gazpacho isn’t gazpacho without the green pepper and the cucumber. 
• 4 or 5 cloves of garlic (I like mine really garlicky, so I sometimes put 6-8 cloves)
• ¼ to ½ cup of sherry vinegar (I like mine a little vinegary too, so I tend to add more vinegar)
• ¼  cup of extra virgin olive oil
• 3 slices of bread (or you could use a nice big chunk of baguette. I have also used some of the higher quality plain gluten free breads that are out there, and they give the gazpacho a nice texture as well, if you are gluten free)
• Salt and Pepper to taste
• Diced or sliced bell pepper and cucumber to garnish

Start by toasting the bread and cutting the crust off.  Soak the bread in cool water. You just need enough water to cover the bread. I usually cut the bread in cubes and soak it in water in a bowl. You can also add the sherry vinegar to the soaking water.

Puree the tomatoes, cucumber, garlic, and bell pepper in a blender until smooth. Add the bread, any extra  water from the soak, and the vinegar, and blend. While the gazpacho is blending, add the olive oil. Add salt and pepper to taste.

Chill for 2 to 4 hours.

I usually serve gazpacho in martini glasses with a cucumber straw, or I serve it in little tapas bowls with a diced cucumber and bell pepper garnish, so that guests can drink directly from the bowl. I rarely serve this with a bowl and spoon, just because it’s more like a drink than it is a soup.

The gazpacho should be smooth. It should not be chunky. Nor should it resemble salsa in any way. It should be a rich pink –orange color. It’s like a savory smoothie, if you will. To me gazpacho does not have cilantro, nor does it have hot sauce, cayenne pepper or truffle oil. Gazpacho is just a simple blend of fantastic fresh ingredients at their naked fineness, with just a few flavors blended in. To me, this truly is the best way to get the tomato-iest of tomato flavors straight from the garden, and it brings me right back to the little tiled balcony in my little apartment in southern Spain.

So, buen provecho, and enjoy the gazpacho!

** Note from Sweet Greens: You can see all of Teresa’s vegan recipes here.

All photos by Teresa © mtk 2011-2012