Refreshing gazpacho with a slight kick - perfect vegan soup for a summer party.
Updated August 16, 2022
It's been a hot summer in the Bay Area. A few days before the 4th-of-July long weekend, a week of 90-something˚ F temperatures was being forecasted. No big deal, those of you in other parts of the country might say; but this isn't an area where homes have air conditioning. After a few days, it's a little miserable when you're used to temperatures in the 60's this time of year, and you're moving heavy boxes into a new home.
So we ditched the boxes, and headed to the mountains. Unfortunately the heat tracked us all the way to the Lake like a hound dog following a scent. So I made meals that could be eaten at room temperature, or chilled, like this gazpacho soup, until the weather returned to normal, whatever that is.
This twist on gazpacho uses tomatillos, which are highly under-rated in my humble opinion, and a splash of Pinot Noir. A nice fruity Syrah would work just as well. If it's hot where you are, this is a great way to beat the heat, and take advantage of the season's best tomatoes.
Cook's Tips:
This is a recipe where tomatoes shine. If they're less than perfect, save them for another recipe where they're not the star of the show.
A fruity Pinot Noir or a Syrah are perfect in this soup. The effect is subtle, but noticeable.
The Serrano adds just a little kick, but if that's not to your taste, it's easy to eliminate.
The most important ingredient, after the tomatoes, is the bread at the end of the recipe. This is an old Italian secret for getting a creamy consistency in soups without the cream. The secret is to use very fresh bread without any crusts. The effect in this soup is to smooth out what can be a coarse overall texture. Watching it in the food processor was like watching a piece of magic.
Gazpacho For a Hot Summer Day
Ingredients
- 2 pounds fresh tomatoes
- 1 white onion coarsely chopped (about 1 ½ cups)
- 2 cups chopped English cucumber
- 1 red pepper coarsely chopped
- 3 tomatillos
- ½ Serrano pepper
- 2 garlic cloves minced
- 4 ½ tablespoons sherry wine vinegar
- 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
- 2 tablespoons red wine either a Pinot Noir, Syrah or Zinfandel work well
- 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- ¼ cup packed soft fresh bread crusts removed
Instructions
- Bring a small pot of water to a boil (about 4 cups of water). Using a sharp, serrated knife, slice a small "X" at the bottom of each tomato, and place them in a medium bowl. Pour the hot water over them, and allow to soak for a minute. Remove and peel by grabbing the skin on of the corners created by the "X".
- Slice in quarters and place in a bowl of a food processor fitted with a blade, along with the white onion, cucumber, and red pepper. If the cucumber has a lot of seeds, scoop them out with a spoon, and chop up the remaining flesh. If the cucumber has a thick waxy skin, remove it as well.
- Remove the husks from the tomatillos, rinse well, and halve. Slice the Serrano pepper in half lengthwise, seed, and mince. Add the tomatillos and Serrano to the bowl of the processor, along with the minced garlic.
- Process to a smooth texture, or the texture you prefer, and pour into a stainless steel bowl. If the bowl of your processor it too small to accommodate all of these ingredients, first process the tomatoes, onion, and cucumber together, and pour into the bowl. Replace the bowl of the processor and re-fit the blade, and add the red pepper, tomatillos, Serrano and garlic. Process, and pour to the same bowl.
- Using a balloon shaped whisk, whisk the sherry wine vinegar, olive oil, red wine, Worcestershire sauce, and salt.
- Remove approximately three cups of the soup and pour back into the food processor. Add the soft bread in pieces, and process until smooth. Pour back into the bowl, and stir into the remaining soup.
- Cover with plastic and chill for 4 hours or ideally overnight before serving.
Cynthia
Susan, this is beautiful! What a lovely idea to add a bit of wine to it. I've been eating anything I can that is good served chilled or at room temp, too. Good luck with your move!
The Wimpy Vegetarian
Thanks so much Cynthia! I'm making another batch tomorrow. I made some last weekend for a party, and it was instantly gobbled up.
Winnie
I adore gazpacho. Looks like the perfect way to stay cool!
The Wimpy Vegetarian
Thanks so much Winnie! I totally agree - nothing like gazpacho when the mercury shoots up!
CCU
Gazpacho looks super delicious, this is great way to enjoy soup in summer 😀
Cheers
CCU
The Wimpy Vegetarian
Thanks CCU! Stay cool!
Sophia
This looks great Susan. Will definitely try to make soon once I get my hands on some good home-grown tomatoes!
The Wimpy Vegetarian
Thanks Sophia. I'd love to hear what you think if you make this!
apuginthekitchen
I will never get used to those high temps and a cool gazpacho sounds just perfect.I like the addition of the tomatillo's. Keep cool!!
The Wimpy Vegetarian
I will never get used to heat either. My body just isn't happy when it's much over 75˚F!
lizthechef
My favorite summer recipe, truly, and a healthy "diet" food. I make big batches and we eat it until we are almost tired of it. Then, another batch...Love the heat here.
The Wimpy Vegetarian
It's just a touch of heat in the soup, more than balanced with the wine :-)!!
TasteFood
This is my favorite hot weather meal - love the photo!
The Wimpy Vegetarian
I never get tired of it. You'd better be writing this from Alaska, BTW. 🙂
Sunithi
This looks so rustic and good. Been making watermelon gazpacho lately. Will have to try this !! Beautiful pics !!
laurasmess
Beautiful recipe Susan! Love the idea of adding a splash of wine also... perfect for a warm day! Unfortunately it's ridiculously cold over here at the moment (mid-winter, and raining all the time!) but I am bookmarking this recipe for the first signs of sunshine! Thanks xx
[email protected]
What a lovely summer dish- I'm so eager for our garden tomatoes to ripen! Never made gazpacho before but will add this one to the list for sure 🙂
mjskit
What a uniquely delicious gazpacho! Love the use of the tomatillo and wine! This is one I definitely need to try! Thanks for sharing!
Ellen
It definitely was gazpacho weather. I made some a few days ago as well. I haven't added wine or tomatillos before. Looks delicious.
Chirs
Congratulations! Your dedication to providing healthy recipes to others has gotten our attention. We like your awesomeness and invite you to share your culinary creations on our new recipe index site dedicated to recipes such as these, which help to promote health and longevity. For more information please visit our site: http://www.healthyrecipeverified.com .
wynajem mieszkan
I do not even know how I ended up here, but I thought this post was great. I do not know who you are but certainly you are going to a famous blogger if you aren't already 😉 Cheers!