Description
A vibrant, revitalizing chilled soup that captures the essence of a Mediterranean summer. This recipe moves beyond the basics, building a creamy, satisfying texture with a secret ingredient—toasted almonds—while a hint of smoked paprika adds a deep, savory note. It’s a nutritionally balanced, flavor-forward dish perfect as an elegant starter or a light lunch.
Ingredients
Scale
- 3 lbs about 1.4 kg very ripe Roma or vine-ripened tomatoes, cored and roughly chopped
- 1 large English cucumber (divided)
- 1 red bell pepper (stemmed, seeded, and roughly chopped)
- 1 yellow bell pepper (stemmed, seeded, and roughly chopped)
- ½ small red onion (roughly chopped)
- 3 large cloves garlic (peeled)
- 1 thick slice (40 g stale whole-wheat bread, crusts removed)
- 2 tbsp 14 g slivered almonds, toasted
- ¼ cup (60 mL high-quality extra virgin olive oil, plus more for garnish)
- 4 tbsp 60 mL sherry vinegar
- ½ tsp sea salt
- ½ tsp smoked paprika
- ¼ tsp freshly ground black pepper
- ¼ cup fresh Italian parsley (chopped, for garnish)
Instructions
- Prepare the Garnish: Finely dice about a quarter of the English cucumber and a quarter of each bell pepper. Combine in a small bowl, cover, and refrigerate.
- Soften and Toast: Roughly chop the remaining cucumber, bell peppers, and red onion. Tear the stale bread into small pieces and place in a bowl with 2 tablespoons of water to soften. In a dry small skillet over medium-low heat, toast the slivered almonds 2–3 minutes until fragrant and lightly golden; remove.
- Create the Base: In the blender, combine the roughly chopped tomatoes, red onion, and garlic. Blend on medium for 30 seconds to create a coarse, liquid base.
- Build the Body: Add the remaining chopped cucumber, bell peppers, soaked bread (and any unabsorbed water), and toasted almonds. Blend on high for about 60 seconds, until very smooth.
- Emulsify the Soup: With the blender running on medium, remove the lid’s center cap and slowly drizzle in the ¼ cup extra virgin olive oil to form a creamy emulsion.
- Season and Finish: Add the sherry vinegar, sea salt, smoked paprika, and black pepper. Blend for 20 seconds to combine.
- Chill and Meld: Transfer to a large glass pitcher or non-reactive bowl. Cover and chill for at least 4 hours, up to 24 hours.
- Serve: Stir well. Ladle into chilled bowls and garnish with the reserved diced vegetables, parsley, and a light drizzle of extra virgin olive oil.
Notes
- Tomato Quality is Key: The flavor of your gazpacho is entirely dependent on your tomatoes. Use the ripest, most flavorful in-season tomatoes you can find for the best results.
- Texture Control: For an ultra-silky texture, you can pass the blended soup through a fine-mesh sieve before chilling.
- Vinegar Choice: While sherry vinegar is traditional for its nutty complexity, a good quality red wine vinegar can be substituted in a pinch.
Nutrition Information
Per serving (approximately 1.25 cups)
- Calories: 136 kcal
- Total Fat: 7.9 g
- Saturated Fat: 1.1 g
- Sodium: 176 mg
- Total Carbohydrates: 13.9 g
- Dietary Fiber: 3.5 g
- Total Sugars: 7.3 g (all naturally occurring)
- Added Sugars: 0 g
- Protein: 3.4 g
Nutrition
- Calories: 136