Great gazpacho

Hot weather demands a cold soup

For me, the best part of summer is the abundance of fresh, locally grown produce that tastes sweeter and infinitely more flavourful than anything we find in the supermarkets during the winter months. And when the thought of cooking in sweltering hot weather is too unappealing, that’s when I turn to my favourite summer recipe—gazpacho.

Note: For this recipe, you can use canned tomatoes, some of your own homemade jarred tomatoes or, if you’re ready for the real deal, fresh tomatoes that have been roasted to remove the skins. The soup will be delicious in any case. Also, the measurements are approximate; this is a great soup to personalize to your taste. The secret lies in using the freshest vegetables you can find.

Ingredients:

• 1,000 ml canned, jarred or roasted tomatoes with skins removed
• 1 small red onion
• 1 medium cucumber
• 2 stalks of celery
• 1 red and 1 yellow pepper
• 2-3 cloves of garlic, crushed
• 2 handfuls each of fresh basil and oregano
• 15-30 ml fresh parsley
• 60 ml extra-virgin olive oil
• 15 ml balsamic vinegar
• sea salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
• 30 ml fresh lemon juice

Finely chop all of the vegetables and put into a large bowl. Or, if you prefer, use a food processor and coarsely process the vegetables in small batches. Add oil, vinegar, salt and pepper. Chill for several hours to let the ingredients get to know each other.

This is the just the base. From here, you can add any number of ingredients to create your own soup: cubed avocado, marinaded artichoke hearts, capers, grilled prawns, homemade croutons, hot sauce, cumin, cilantro or crumbled cheese. What is essential is a good loaf of bread, some hot weather and friends to share it with.