Fresh Tomato Gazpacho: Cold Soup for Hot Days



I cannot deal with cooking when the weather is this dang hot. But I still want to make food. So, that means lots of salads and lots of gazpacho! Traditional gazpacho includes stale bread as part of the soup; many newer recipes call for processed things things like a can of V-8. My version skips the bread and thickens the soup with lots of fresh produce, making it much less caloric, higher in fiber and more nutritious. It's a great way to add more veggies to your daily intake. If you're looking to lose some weight, try having a cup of this before your meals; you'll fill up on the gazpacho allowing you to be satisfied with smaller portions of your meal.

Oh, and did I mention it's ridiculously easy? All you need is a blender and you're pretty much good to go.



Ingredients
yields approximately 1 liter
  • about 2.5 pounds of ripe tomatoes
  • 1 bell pepper (I usually use red or yellow)
  • 1/3 English seedless cucumber
  • 1/4 red onion
  • 3-5 cloves garlic
  • 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
  • juice of 1 lemon
  • salt, to taste
  • diced avocado, minced red onion or cucumber, croutons for topping

Halve or quarter large tomatoes and remove any stems; I use a mix of vine-ripened tomatoes and some grape tomatoes, for a nice blend of different tomato flavors. 


Cut the cucumber into chunks. Remove stem and seeds from pepper and cut into large chunks. Add the olive oil and lemon juice to your blender.

Toss in all the cut veggies and peeled garlic cloves.
Puree until you reach the texture you prefer. If you can't fit all your veggies into the blender at once, just blend what you can fit and keep adding the chunks until it's all in. Add salt, to taste. Put soup in airtight container and chill for at least an hour before serving. I like to top mine with some croutons, chopped avocado, diced red onion and cucumber, or grilled shrimp.





Comments

  1. i add a lot of the raw garlic, so that gives some nice heat (for me, anyway)...

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  2. Agree with you about the cooking, I'm on an oven strike. Cold cucumber soup, ceviche, I poached salmon but that was a stretch (needed a burner on). This looks great, no heat though? I'm adding some.

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  3. oh, but he did help me to make it! always fun for the kiddies to toss stuff in the blender...

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  4. nah, he doesn't eat salad. just green smoothies. he used to eat this when he was a baby, though, back when he ate everything!! now he eats mostly the croutons dipped slightly in the gazpacho (like chips and salsa). 

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  5. mmh! i'll have to make a special trip to the grocery store today for this one... we are definitely having this for lunch! (what does H eat on hot days like this? does he eat salad, too?!)

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  6. Too delish for words!

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  7. i had this for breakfast today. yum.

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  8. YUM! This gazpacho is so fresh, delicious, and packed with flavor! Easy to make, wonderful as leftovers, and surprisingly filling - a perfect summer treat!

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  9. This is amazing! Absolutely loved it!

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  10. This looks so vibrant and colorful, beautiful pictures, too... Perfect summer food for hot summer days!

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  11. This is beautiful! So healthy and fresh, and so inviting! yum!

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  12. I love gazpacho - one of my fave soups! Your version looks so vibrant and delicious!

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  13. What a delicious soup and recipe! Great photos! Pinned and shared!

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