To follow on from my earlier recipe for Paella I have now put together the recipe for Gazpacho soup. A favourite of mine when the very hot weather arrives in Spain. I hope you enjoy making and eating the soup.
GAZPACHO SOUP It is difficult to give you definite weights or quantities for this recipe, you generally just gauge it yourself through trial and error. Lots of red, ripe tomatoes Cucumber (with the part that attaches it to the plant removed: it is far to bitter) Anaheim peppers (or any green pepper which is not sweet) Old, hard bread (the favourite for gazpacho is extra sour dough, but others will do too)
o Garlico Red vinegaro Olive oilo Salto
Water There are as many recipes for gazpacho as families are in Spain. It is one of those receipts that are passed down through the family. This is the one I have learned from my Spanish neighbour. She is an elderly lady with plenty of patience and understanding at my command of the Spanish language.
As a rule, you want more tomatoes in the gazpacho than anything else. A nice looking gazpacho should have a pretty orange-red colour. Therefore, add the ingredients according to this principle. First, cut the vegetables in pieces that your blender can manage. You do not need to peel the cucumber or the tomatoes or remove the seeds. This gives it plenty of body. Cut some bread and soak it in water. Add it to the blender. Add the olive oil, salt, vinegar and water. Turn the power on until everything blends "homogeneously". Take a spoonful and taste it. At this point you can decide what is missing, what is in excess, etc. You can experiment with the recipe: some people like the gazpacho very thick, so they add a lot of bread, while some others like it very liquidly, and they add more water instead, or less bread.
Some people get crazy adding garlic, while some others hate it. It is purely your choice and taste. Remember it is easier to add extra! Gazpacho can be served at room temperature. However, as it is a typical summer dish, it is usually served cold. In some places this is so true that they even throw ice cubes in it when ready to eat. As with many other dishes, when you save gazpacho from one day to the other, it tends to improve in flavour.
Hasta llego
Pablo
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