Gazpacho: a recipe

Gazpacho

I'm a huge fan of soups, mainly because of how quick and easy they usually are. Even better? Cold soups -- perfect for summer, as no cooking is required.

Even better than better? Gazpacho.

There are very few other dishes so chock-full of all the freshest veg from the garden. Gazpacho lets you feel slightly smug that you are nourishing your body with a bajillion servings of vegetables with every spoonful.

The gazpacho recipe I use comes from my chef friend Liz Tarpy, who first crafted it in 2009 for the Maine Cottage newsletter.

(Sidebar: If you like this blog, you pretty much have Liz to thank for it. Not only did she give me my first-ever set of recipes, written out creatively on the waitress order pads that we used during our high school summer job, she also encouraged me to find my creative voice in the food world. Thanks, Liz!)

I like Liz's recipe because there all sorts of ways that you can vary it, based on what fresh ingredients you have on hand (or what you received in your CSA share).

For instance, I only had a couple of large tomatoes, so I used a handful of yellow pear and Sungold cherry tomatoes to make up the difference. And I was low on parsley so I added some fresh basil as well.

Like all the best recipes, you can customize this one to suit your own tastes while maintaining the basic greatness of the original.

Gazpacho from Liz Tarpy of Teaberry Productions

Ingredients
3 beefsteak tomatoes (about 1 3/4 pounds), coarsely chopped
1 English cucumber, peeled and seeded, coarsely chopped
1/2 red bell pepper, coarsely chopped
1/2 yellow bell pepper, coarsely chopped
1 clove garlic
2 large scallions, halved
5 radishes, trimmed
1 cup packed fresh parsley leaves
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for garnish
1/4 cup red wine vinegar
1 cup cold water
1 teaspoon kosher salt
Chopped almonds and sea salt for garnish

Directions
In a food processor, puree the vegetables in batches, adding a little water as necessary to get the pieces well mashed. Remove each batch to a large mixing bowl. Stir in the parsley, oil, vinegar, water and kosher salt. Taste -- you may want more salt, vinegar, water or oil. Chill

Before serving, garnish with almonds, a drizzle of olive oil and a sprinkle of sea salt, if desired.