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Week 5: Your Challenge -- Create Your Own Gazpacho
Refreshingly cold on hot days, gazpacho was made for summer. Gazpacho is a tomato-based raw vegetable soup originating from Spain. It combines summer vegetables, including tomatoes, cucumbers, and bell peppers. To prepare gazpacho, chop the vegetables of your choice and combine them in a food processor or blender with garlic, onions, vinegar, extra-virgin olive oil, salt, and pepper. Prepare croutons on Phase 2 to complement your gazpacho by baking a whole-wheat loaf of bread and cutting it into bite-size pieces. Season them with dried herbs, extra-virgin olive oil, salt, and pepper for a flavorful crunch.
This Week: We want you to create your own gazpacho recipe! Get creative and make your gazpacho cream-based, using low-fat or dairy-free mayonnaise, or light or reduced-fat sour cream. Not all gazpacho recipes are tomato-based; other recipes call fruit, such as a watermelon gazpacho. For a more traditional gazpacho recipe, check out our Heirloom Tomato Gazpacho, and for something with a twist, try our White Gazpacho recipe. Report back to us with what ingredients you used. How did you prepare your chilled soup? What vegetables did you use? Did you enjoy it? Share your recipe and photos with us.
Well, that IS what makes these challenges most fun, isn't it! Time for me to shake things up a bit and really, REALLY learn something totally new! Better start by checking out some existing recipes and then heading to my own "test kitchen". Will letchya know!
By the way, it is my birthday, so I feel like South Beach just gave me a great birthday gift!!!! Thank you!!!
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(Published 8/5/03) This summer, treat yourself to a bowl of delicious, garden-fresh gazpacho. This refreshing chilled soup originates from Spain and is easy to make. It's also good for all three phases of the diet. |
So.... have at it all. Tempt me if you can!
Linda
Thanks Deb!!! Week four was a pretty easy challenge for me, but I thought week five was a bit of a challenge, but I finally found a Chilled Summer Fruit Soup recipe that I made this everning, we will be having for dinner tomorrow night.
Have a great day!!!
Chilled Summer Fruit Soup
Serves: 8
1 tablespoon minced ginger
3 cups chopped strawberries
2 cups chopped pineapple
1 1/2 cups chopped mango
1 cup blackberries
2 pieces lime peel
2 pieces orange peel
4 cups water
1/4 cup orange juice
2 tablespons fresh lemon juice
2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
mint springs for garnish
DIRECTIONS
Saute the ginger in a medium pot until fragrant, about 2 minutes (no oil is needed). Add strawberries, pineapple, mango and lemon, lime and orange peels, cook for another 2 minutes. Add water, fruit juices and bring to a simmer, stirring occasionally. Simmer for 15-20 minutes and remove from heat. Allow mixture to cool slightly and transfer in batches to a blender or food processor. Puree and strain into a large bowl. Cover and refrigerate until well chilled, serve w/ mint spring for garnish.
My whole family will be together for dinner tomorrow night, this Chilled Summer Fruit Soup will be our first course. I think everyone will be happy to try something new and I will post how everyone liked the soup tomorrow night.
Last week (herb challenge) I prepared a chilled cucumber with DILL soup. I did not post because it was not my cup of tea. I put way too much dill, it overpowered the cucumber.
Sandy and Chef,
Your recipes sound wonderful! Chilled fruit soup is a great idea. Chef, I was also looking at that Indian spiced recipe thinking maybe I'd give it a try. Can't wait to hear what you thought - if its a keeper I'll also try it out.
(I've got to use up all those spices!)
- N
I did a lot of research and read many, many recipes before I decided on a veggie & herb combination of my own. I also learned that traditionally, the tomato base also contains soaked bread, ground in with the herbs and a bit of olive oil with a mortar and pestal. Well! Far be it from me to sway from tradition when trying an ages old dish for the first time (plus I love any excuse to use it), so I broke out my mortar and pestal!
I started by dicing up about 2 oz of sourdough bread and soaking it in cold water while I chopped up the 'maters, a red bell pepper, and a cucumber. After chopping the veggies, I drained the water from my bread crumbs and finely chopped the following herbs from my neighbor's garden... sweet basil, savory, and parsley. I tossed the herbs, a tablespoonfull of the 'mater mixture, and some minced garlic into the mortar with the bread and started grinding away. WOW! It smelled so good as I crushed the herbs into the soaked bread and after just a few minutes I had a very aromatic paste which I dumped into the bowl with the tomato mixture.
Next came the food processing part. I wanted a smooth, creamy soup which I planned to garnish with finely chopped red bell pepper just to give it some crunch. To achieve that, I processed the veggie & herb mixture a cup at a time from my bowl into another container. That did not quite get it for me yet, so I added a can of no-sugar 'mater paste and then processed again and back to my SS bowl. It still has a texture, mind you, but one I could live with. And the addition of the paste made it thicker, which I love.
And here it is! Delicious and sweet. I can't wait to try some other veggie & herb combinations. I want to try a mildy spicy one next time... maybe with a hint of cayenne or green chilis.
