Gazpacho

Gazpacho is a cold soup which is very refreshing in the hot summer weather in Spain. It is an incredibly healthy option involving plenty of raw vegetables along with bread and olive oil.
The following ingredients are what I use but you should experiment a little to get it to your exact taste. Perhaps you prefer more or less vinegar or more or less olive oil. The quantities of bread and water you use will change the thickness of it.
Do make notes of what you prefer so that next time you make it you don't have to begin experimenting all over again.



Gazpacho ingredients:
For 6 - 8 people

1 1/4kg ripe tomatoes
1/2 medium onion
1/2 standard cucumber
1 green pepper (the long thin type) or 1/2 a bigger pepper
1 cup olive oil
2 soup spoons vinegar
some stale bread - this quantity can vary depending on taste - I use very little
some cold water
3 ice cubes

To garnish you need a small amount of:

diced tomato
diced green pepper
diced cucumber
croutons

You also need a food blender.
Preparation:
The tomatoes should be peeled and de-seeded. To peel them place them in boiling water for about 30 seconds and then when you remove them the skins should
come off easily. Alternatively you could follow what I do and decide not to peel them to avoid the messing around. I actually like having the seeds in the Gazpacho but you should decide for yourself.
Then chop up the tomatoes, onion, cucumber and green pepper. Don't worry about chopping them too small as they are all going into the food blender.

Now put some of each ingredient in the blender and blend. Transfer the mix to a bowl and continue to blend all the ingredients. This should result in a "chunky" soup. I like it this way but some people prefer it to be completely smooth. If you want this smooth soup then put the gazpacho through a sieve. This will get rid of the tomato seeds and skin if you left them on and any other lumps. At this stage you can add water to get the thickness that you want. I tend to not add very much as I like a thick soup.

Once you have done all this put the gazpacho into a serving bowl, add the ice cubes and put it all in the fridge to chill.

When you serve it you can put a few more ice cubes in it - I personally don't do this.
Put the diced tomato, cucumber, pepper and croutons on a plate and
serve with the Gazpacho.

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