If you’re looking for a cool, palate-pleasing way to start a summer meal, or for a light lunch, make gazpacho. It’s a flavourful and classic soup first blended in the Andalusia region of Spain, whose base ingredients have evolved over the years.
When most think of gazpacho, something tangy and tomato-based accented with other vegetables comes to mind. But the first versions of gazpacho did not have a tomato backdrop, for good reason.
According to the website foodsfromspain.com, the tomato originally came from America and was brought to Spain from Mexico by Spanish colonizers. In the 18th century, the website says, it became well known when the first tomato sauce appeared. But forms of gazpacho had been served up for eons before that date.
According to the Oxford Companion to Food, gazpacho is derived from a concoction Arabs prepared when they occupied much of Spain from the eighth to 13th centuries. Several sources said the word gazpacho is of Arabic origin and means “soaked bread.”
That makes sense, because one of the soup’s key ingredients was and still is bread, often stale, pounded and blended in a mortar with garlic, olive oil, vinegar, salt and water.
That soup was not dissimilar to those still enjoyed in Spain, such as sopa de ajo blanco. Ajo means garlic and blanco means white. Variations of this soup are often referred to as white gazpacho. Beyond garlic and the other ingredients listed above, such things as almonds and green grapes are also blended in.
In other modern white gazpacho recipes, you’ll see such things as green apple, melon and/or cucumber also blended in or used as garnish. White styles of gazpacho can range from being very thin, refreshing and sippable, to being thicker and something better enjoyed with a spoon.
When tomatoes did make it to Spain, gazpachos incorporating them became more fashionable and still are. As with white gazpacho, today there are many variations on the preparation of tomato-based gazpachos, with some being very thin, some very thick and others somewhere in between.
According to foodreference.com, along with the tomatoes, peppers and bread, other ingredients mixed in or used as garnish for these styles of gazpacho include cucumbers, onions, garlic, olive oil, seasonings and something acidic, such as lemon or vinegar.
No matter what the type, once your gazpacho is made, it will taste even better if you have time to allow its flavours to meld and mingle overnight in the refrigerator. I give that option in both of today’s recipes.
Tomato Gazpacho
Rich with in-season vegetables, this splendid chilled soup could be called “summer in a bowl.” Use it to start a summer meal, or serve as a light lunch.
Preparation time: 40 minutes
Cooking time: 1 minute
Makes: 6 servings
1 1/2 lbs. (about 4 medium) ripe red tomatoes
1 medium green bell pepper, seeded and cubed
1/4 English cucumber, peeled and cubed
1/2 medium onion, thinly sliced
2 medium garlic cloves, sliced
1 cup chicken or vegetable stock
3/4 cup vegetable cocktail, such as V-8
1 1/2 cups fresh bread crumbs (see Note)
3 Tbsp balsamic vinegar, or to taste
3 Tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
1/2 tsp ground cumin
1/2 tsp paprika
• pinch or two crushed chili flakes (optional)
• salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
Boil water in a pot that’s large enough to completely submerge the tomatoes. Cut the stem end out of each tomato. Cut a shallow X into the blossom (curved) end of each tomato. Submerge the tomatoes into the boiling water for 1 minute, just until the skins start to loosen.
Lift the tomatoes out of the water and set on a plate. When cool enough to handle, pull the skin off each tomato (they should slip off easily). Cut each peeled tomato in half.
Set a strainer over a medium to large bowl. Working over the strainer and bowl, gently squeeze each tomato half to push and release their seeds and juices.
Use a whisk to push any juices left in the strainer into the bowl below. Discard the seeds; set aside the juice in the bowl.
Coarsely chop the seeded tomatoes. In a food processor, working in batches if needed, pulse the tomatoes, bell pepper, cucumber, onion and garlic with the stock and bread crumbs until the vegetables are finely chopped.
Transfer the mixture to the bowl the fresh tomato juice is in. Stir in remaining ingredients. If you find the gazpacho too thick, thin with a little more stock. Cover and chill the gazpacho at least four hours, or up to one day.
When ready to serve, stir and then taste the gazpacho again and adjust seasonings as needed. Ladle the gazpacho in chilled bowls and serve.
Note: To make bread crumbs, place 1 to 2 slices, depending on size, of cubed or torn white bread in a food processor. Pulse until turned into bread crumbs.
White Gazpacho with Grapes and Almonds
Rich with almonds, the fruity taste of grapes, tangy vinegar and refreshing cucumber, this chilled soup will provide a palate-pleasing way to start a meal.
Preparation time: 25 minutes
Cooking time: None
Makes: 6 servings
2 slices white bread, torn into pieces
2 cups chicken or vegetable stock
2 cups (about 50) green seedless grapes, sliced in half
1 cup slivered blanched almonds
1/2 English cucumber, peeled and cubed
2 medium garlic cloves, sliced
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
3 Tbsp white wine or cider vinegar
• salt and white pepper to taste
6 green grapes, thinly sliced, for garnish
2 tsp snipped chives (optional)
Place the first eight ingredients in food processor. Pulse one to two minutes, or until the mixture is well blended. Season the gazpacho with salt and white pepper. Transfer the gazpacho to jug or other storage vessel, cover and refrigerate at least four hours, or up to one day.
When ready to serve, stir and then taste the gazpacho again and adjust seasonings as needed. Divide and ladle or pour the soup into chilled bowls. Garnish the top of each bowl with some sliced grapes and, if desired, some snipped chives, and then enjoy.
Festival: The sixth annual edition of Taste: Victoria’s Festival of Food and Wine kicks off Thursday with Taste the Difference: A B.C. Wine and Cuisine Tasting. From 6 to 9 p.m., in both ballrooms of the Hotel Grand Pacific, dozens of B.C. wines will be sampled and paired with an incredible array of delicious bites prepared by Victoria chefs. Tickets are $89 per person, and organizers of this event say to come hungry.
The festival continues on Friday, Saturday and Sunday with a series of other food and/or beverage events with ticket prices ranging from $19 to $99.
Two other events this weekend are Band, Bubbles and Bennys, where music, sparkling wine and brunch will be on the menu, and Everything Is Better With Bacon, a special three-course, bacon-infused, wine-paired dinner.
For information about festival events, go to victoriataste.com.
