Gazpacho = summer. Well, it does for me 
I love the stuff and every summer I look forward to using the seasonal veggies to try new recipes for them. I know I’m pushing the tomato season, at least here in Wisconsin, but I had to try a new gazpacho today. It was a craving that had to be honored. Hands down, THIS gazpacho recipe is my favorite one to date.
It was so nice smell the fresh tomatoes and cucumbers as I made this today. I can remember my grandmother canning both when I spent summers with her on the farm. I think of her standing over them in the farm house kitchen, chatting away with me, every time I smell them. I think that’s one of the reasons I love summer food so much, it brings back happy memories of Grandma.
In this recipe, the tomatoes and cucumber, combined with the balsamic vinegar, make a genuinely fresh mouthful of summer flavor. Add that dash of hot sauce and now we’re talking Sarah’s favorite kind of flavor. 
It doesn’t hurt that you don’t have to turn the oven on for this either, right? I love that part!
Do you like gazpacho? If you do, I’d love to hear what you think about this one. I, for one, am very glad it made such a big batch. Here’s how I did it…
First things first:
Hello
Thoroughly rinse the cat hair off your cucumber and red onion after your sous chef has inspected them. Thank him for his assistance, and send him off to play with his 110 pound Labrador Retriever brother.
Next, add 2 cups of extra-virgin olive oil, 1/4 cup of balsamic vinegar (I used golden balsamic) and 1 teaspoon of Tabasco sauce to your blender and briefly blend. It’ll look a lot like this.
Now chop half of a medium red onion and half a medium cucumber into large pieces. You’ll also need 12 fresh basil leaves and the leaves from 6 large sprigs of flat-leaf parsley for the next step…
…which is adding all of those things to the oil mixture in the blender.
Blend until smooth.
Now, chop up 3 medium Roma tomatoes and 4 heirloom tomatoes into large pieces.
Add a few tomatoes to your blender, and blend until smooth. Continue adding the tomatoes, a few at a time, until the blender is about 3/4 full. At this point, pour half the soup into a large bowl. Continue adding and blending the tomatoes like this until they’re all incorporated.
Pour it all into a large bowl and chill for at least 2 hours. Don’t skip the chilling, your gazpacho will not be good unless it’s chilled through, and that would be bad for your happy summer day.
Season with a little more salt, vinegar and/or hot sauce to taste and serve with a drizzle of extra-virgin olive oil. That’s all there is to it, except to take it outside on your deck or patio and enjoy it in the summer breezes.
Enjoy!!
NOTES: This recipe took about 20 minutes of hands on time. It made 7 cups of gazpacho. That’s lot for a two-person household like this, but rest assured none of it will go to waste. Since I already had the olive oil, vinegar and hot sauce, this gazpacho cost us $4.21 ($3.00 for the tomatoes), which comes out to about 61 cents a serving if you use 1 cup servings. (I can’t eat 1 cup servings, it’s more like a 1/2 cup serving for me).
My Favorite Gazpacho Recipe
Adapted from a recipe in Bi*Rite Market’s Eat Good Food cookbook.
If you don’t have this cookbook yet, and you’re interested in seasonal, sustainable eating, this book is a must have. We’ve had it since last fall and it is one of our favorites, we cook from it all the time. Eat Good Food is filled with all kinds of information, ideas and recipes. I especially love that the recipes are sorted by season. It’s fantastic!
Ingredients:
- 2 cups extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for garnish
- 1/4 cup balsamic vinegar (or sherry vinegar), plus more as needed
- 1 teaspoon hot sauce, like Tabasco
- 1/2 medium red onion, peeled and cut into large pieces
- 1/2 medium cucumber, trimmed and cut into large pieces
- Leaves from 6 large sprigs of flat-leaf parsley
- 12 large fresh basil leaves
- 1 large clove garlic
- Kosher salt
- 3 medium Roma tomatoes, cored and cut into large pieces
- 4 medium heirloom tomatoes, cored and cut into large pieces
Directions:
Add the oil, vinegar and hot sauce to the blender and briefly blend. Add the onion, cucumber, parsley, basil, garlic and 1 tablespoon salt and blend until smooth. Add the tomatoes, a few at a time, blending as you go. When the blender is about three-fourths full, pour half of the liquid into a large bowl. Continue blending and adding tomatoes like this, a few at a time, until all the tomatoes are incorporated and everything is blended smooth. Pour the soup into the large bowl.
If you’d like a smoother texture, strain the soup with a fine-mesh sieve.
Chill for at least 2 hours before serving. Whisk to blend, then taste and season with salt, vinegar or hot sauce as needed. Garnish with a drizzle of extra-virgin olive oil.
This is be a terrific recipe to try later this summer when hopefully I’ll have lots of heirloom tomatoes to harvest.
I hope we have a lot too, I could eat this every day, I think. Do you love gazpacho in the summer too?
Thanks for the visit Karen, I really appreciate it. I hope you’re week is going well!
Karen, do you have a website I can visit? I tried to get there just now, but the link with your name is broken. Back Road Journal sounds like my kind of reading! Thanks!
Ohh I’ve never had gazpacho, but it sounds easy to make! Are you supposed to serve this chilled, or just chill it to serve hot afterward?
I never had it until a couple years ago myself, but it immediately became a summer fave
Yep, it’s meant to be served cold. (It does not taste good warm at all) It’s so refreshing, especially if you like cucumbers and tomatoes. Bonus! No raisins!
Haha yes! Down with raisins!
i LOVE gazpacho! thank you for sharing this! i can’t wait to try it
I do too Madison, definitely a favorite summer lunch for me. I could eat this one every day and never tire of it
Happy Weekend Madison!!!
Yet another reason I should get a blender. How easy is that!
There is nothing like sweet grandmother memories – yours sound very lovely. Mine consist mainly of lefsa making. Mmmm lefsa.
Mmmmmmmmm lefse….mmmmmmmmm, Talk about a staple in my life when I was growing up. Both sides of the family made it constantly. I haven’t had it in sooooooo long. I’ll have to try making some this year! Good call dear
I hope you’re having a wonderful weekend!
Sarah!! I’m so glad to be back and excited that I didn’t miss this post. I’ve never made gazpacho but have memories of my mom making this for guests and wondering what this soup was with such an unusual name. The flavors and fresh ingredients in this are calling me.. I’ve printed off a copy so I can source the ingredients at the local market this weekend! Perfect for Sunday dinner I think!!
Perfect Smidge! It makes great use of the farmer’s market goodies. I hope you love it. It’s so refreshing and wonderful for summer. IMHO
Yes! It would make a perfect Sunday dinner!
Glad you’re back dear, I hope you enjoyed your break! xoxo
That looks really refreshing my favorite part … easy to make (even I can’d mess it up, I think). I may have to try that!
That’s the perfect word for this Carol Ann, ‘refreshing’. I’m going to make it again this week because I just love a little with lunch. It makes it feel like summer
Have a great weekend dear!
I have actually been looking for a gazpacho recipe – this sounds perfect and looks delicious! I’ve also never heard of golden balsamic vinegar – I’ll be sure to start looking for this – thanks, Sarah!
I had never heard of it either Bill, until I saw at TJ Maxx one day. I use it when I don’t want the color of traditional balsamic in something, like this gazpacho. The flavor is the same as the darker though.
You’re welcome, thanks for stopping by Bill!
Sarah what an adorable kitty! My 3 are only ever interested if they know raw meat, fish or chicken is in the near vicinity.
Mandy
Love your gazpacho – hope it won’t be too long a winter here before I can give it a try.
Mornin’ Mandy! Hope you’re having a wonderful day today. And, taking lots of pictures
Oh Chuck is definitely interested raw fish and chicken too…..and anything else that’s out. He’s quite a character. Loveable beyond belief too
Happy weekend!
I love how cooking brings memories of your grandmother to mind. That’s a very special bonus.
You delight me with your summer recipes. My mouth is watering as I read and devour your photos with my eyes.
Happy, happy Friday, Sarie!
Happy, happy Friday to you dear! Enjoy the warmth! Summer’s baaaaaack! For a few minutes anyway, lol.
You know, Sarah, I’ve never made gazpacho. I’ve enjoyed it plenty of times but never made it for myself. Give me that many tomatoes and most of those ingredients and I’m making a sauce of some kind. I need to change that, especially now that there are good tomatoes at the farmers market again. I bought a few last Saturday and it sure was good to taste a fresh tomato again. I bet that’s what you were thinking when you tasted this gazpacho.
Sauces are good too! I’ve been looking for various sauces to can from tomatoes this summer, so I can have great pasta dishes this winter. You’re right John, that is what I’m thinking with the gazpacho, I have become so addicted to fresh flavors, seasonal flavors. I blame real Italian cooking
Honestly!
This looks fantastic! My hubby and I have a running joke about “The Summer of Food” — which, as it turns out, is every summer. I’ll have to add this to our Summer of Food schedule.
Oh I love “The Summer of Food”, I could write volumes about ours, lol! I love this one for summer because it’s easy and uses zero heat
Perfect!
Mmmmm! That looks delicious, Sarah! ^_^
You should come over and help me eat it dear
Hugs from Wisc Marianne!!!!