Ever since having gazpacho the other weekend at the Hubbard Inn and posting about it, I have been craving it. We finally have ripe tomatoes in our garden, so I decided it was time to make a batch. I essentially just decided to copy the whole idea and presentation from Hubbard Inn since I loved it so much.
Gazpacho just like Hubbard Inn's!
Gazpacho
About 4 servings
- 3 large tomatoes
- 1 cucumber, peeled and seeds removed
- 1 jalapeno, stem and seeds removed
- 1 green or red bell pepper, stem and seeds removed
- 1/2 red onion
- 3 tablespoons sherry vinegar
- 1/4 cup olive oil
- Herbed Ricotta Crostini (recipe below)
Core tomatoes and cut in half long-wise and then into quarters. Pull/squeeze out seeds and juicy pulp. Roughly chop, throw in a colander, and season with some salt. Set colander with tomatoes in sink and let excess water drain from tomatoes for about 15 minutes (the salt will help to draw out the excess water). Shake tomatoes around in colander as needed to help get out the excess water. (Leaving all those seeds and extra watery pulp in the tomatoes just makes the gazpacho more thin and watery than what it should be).
Roughly chop cucumber, jalapeno, bell pepper, and onion, and toss into bowl of food processor. Toss in tomatoes, too. Process in food processor until fairly smooth, but not 100% liquified. Mix in vinegar and olive oil. Transfer to a bowl and whisk in salt and pepper. The gazpacho will take a decent bit of salt as tomatoes can absorb lots of salt. (If there are too many veggies to do all at once in the food processor, mix all veggies up in a bowl so they are evenly distributed, and then puree them in processor in two batches, using half the vinegar and olive oil for each batch).
Pop the soup in the fridge for about 20 minutes to chill it.
Serve in bowl with a drizzle of olive oil and the crostini
Herbed Ricotta Crostini
- 1/2 cup ricotta
- 1/2 tablespoon fresh parsley, roughly chopped
- 1/2 tablespoon fresh thyme, roughly chopped
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 baguette, sliced on the diagonal
Mix ricotta, herbs, and olive oil, and season generously with salt and fresh cracked pepper.
Toast bread slices in 350 degree oven for about 5 -6 minutes. Smear with ricotta mixture when they come out and serve with gazpacho.
The Gourmet Wino 