Looking through my recipe archive recently, I realized it was missing a recipe for gazpacho.
After six years of recipe creation, this revelation surprised me. It's not that I believe I'm an amazing cook who should have every possible recipe in my repertoire of cooking skills, it's just that gazpacho is such a common summer soup, that I expected I'd made it at least once in all my years of family cooking.
Since gazpacho isn't in my recipe box, and after a coworker came back from picking up his lunch with a container of cucumber gazpacho, I decided it was time to give this refreshing summer soup a try.
After hunting through Pinterest and other foodie sites, I discovered this tutorial on Food and Wine.
According to Food and Wine, gazpacho was " . . . tomato based, but now you'll often find almond, grape and melon versions too. This perfect hot-weather soup is simply a salad in liquid form, which means it's one of the easiest dishes to make. All you need to get started is a blender and some super-tasty, juicy tomatoes, cut into large chunks."
That description was all I needed to get started making a cucumber version of this summer fresh chilled soup.
I peeled cucumbers, then tossed them into my food processor with chunks of tomatoes, green bell pepper, jalapeno, cilantro and a slice of whole wheat bread. I know the bread sounds like a crazy addition, but according to Food and Wine it thickens the soup. I'm in agreement, as cucumbers can produce a watery-like consistency.
As I said, I used my food processor, so this soup has texture. It isn't as creamy as it would be if I had used a blender. If you want a creamier soup that isn't rustic in appeal, use your blender.
While I've enjoyed a classic tomato based gazpacho soup, it can sometimes be too acidic for my taste. I found this cucumber version truly refreshing, though Mr. Mike wasn't as convinced.
I'll be picking up melons on my next trip to the market. With Seattle temperatures rising, I'm ready to try a melon version this week!
Summer Fresh Cucumber Gazpacho
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