Summer time is a wonderful time to have cold soup. I thought this was the perfect time to post my famous Are You Spanish ? Gazpacho. The name came from a Birthday Dinner Client that insisted that I had to have at least some Spanish blood in me because there is no way a person that was not of Spanish decent could have made Gazpacho this good!
That being said… I revised the original version to make this GLUTEN FREE:) If you want you could always just make it with about four pieces of soft bread with the crusts removed, you could use gluten free bread (although I used the Toasted Onion Gluten Free Matzo from Yehuda). Don’t skip the bread or matzo it is what gives this soup body and substance. Also make sure to let it chill for at least two hours to overnight. Don’t add to much salt & pepper in the beginning as you want the flavors to marry for a few hours, then you can taste and adjust the seasoning accordingly. The resting time does amazing things to the flavor of this lovely summer soup:)
Also, an English cucumber is important to use for this recipe as it cuts down on liquid. When you use an English cucumber you do not have to take the seeds out or peel it, just take off the plastic and wash the outside then you are ready to use it. If you are going to use a regular pepper, make sure to peel it, and take out all the seeds.
AND.. a food processor or blender of some sort is essential to making this recipe. It doesn’t matter what size your processor is because it is fine to do this recipe in batches. Just make sure that you do not go over your fill line on your processor or blender or you will have a mess:) I know …:) LOL 🙂
The last thing I will mention is that I highly recommend taking the time to cut the inside rib ( the white part of the peppers) . This takes away the bitterness of the peppers. It also helps some people be able to digest the peppers better. On a little side note… if you prepare your peppers like this, then slice them, kids will eat the peppers.. really they like them like this!
Now for the World Famous…
Are You Spanish? Gazpacho..(GLUTEN FREE)
- 1/2 cup dry Sherry
- 1/4 cup red wine vinegar
- 1 cup tomato juice ( I use V-8, I think it has more flavor than plain tomato juice)
- 1 can (28 ounces) canned tomatoes in tomato juice (I like the San Marzano tomatoes)
- 2 slices of Gluten Free Matzo ( you can use homemade like I made here click on this link to make your own Perky’s Gluten Free Matzo or use a store bought one..I used Yehuda Toasted Onion Flavor..Gluten Free:) Or you can use 4 slices of gluten free bread with the crusts cut off. Break Matzo into little pieces or if using bread cut into little cubes.
- 1/4 teaspoon garlic paste ( to paste garlic see Perky’s Garlic Paste)
- 1/2 a shallot (diced)
- 1 red pepper (prepared as directed below)
- 1 yellow pepper (prepared as directed below)
- 1 green pepper (prepared as directed below)
- 1/2 English Cucumber ( or 2 large regular cucumbers – peeled and seeded)
- 1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil ( I used Spanish Extra Virgin Olive Oil)
- French Gray sea salt
- Freshly ground black pepper
- Prepare all of your ingredients before you start to make this:)
- Cut the peppers as described above. Save a little about 2 inches for the garnish. You can cut this in very small pieces as I have below… or cut them however you wish for the garnish. Place the garnish peppers in little bowls then cover with cling film and place in the refrigerator until you are ready to garnish your Gazpacho. ( I place each color in a different bowl). Then chop the rest of the peppers up in a large dice.
3. Then cut your cucumber. If using an English cucumber you only have to take the plastic off and wash it. If using a regular cucumber, wash the outside, then peel it (make sure to peel it as the peel is not very good and can be quite tough on a regular cucumber). Also if using a regular cucumber, make sure to take all the seeds out ( you do this by slicing the cucumber in half long-ways, then taking a spoon and scraping down the middle where the seeds are located). Then save a little of the cucumber for garnish. Cut the cucumber as you wish for the garnish, then place in a bowl with cling film in the refrigerator. I also like to cut a few slices of the cucumber while it is still whole for my garnish for the bowl, if you do this just wrap them in cling film and place in the refrigerator. Then cut the rest of the cucumber in large dice.
4. Make sure that your shallot is diced & your garlic pasted:) You can follow my step by step of how to paste garlic here. Perky’s Garlic Paste.
5.Get a large tupperware container ready to place the pureed ingredients in… Now you are ready make the Are You Spanish? Gazpacho.
6. In your food processor or blender (see notes above in introduction) place sherry, red wine vinegar, and chopped peppers. Puree this until smooth, if it is too thick add a little of the tomato juice. Don’t worry if it doesn’t all fit. Just do it in batches, whatever you do do not overfill your machine:) Then pour that mixture into your tupperware. Next add the shallot, garlic & cucumber with the tomato juice. Puree until it is smooth. Then pour that mixture into your tupperware. Then place the canned tomatoes and matzo (or bread) in the blender or processor. Puree until smooth. Then pour that mixture into your tupperware. At this point, stir all the tupperware to combine all the purees together. Then add about 1/3 cup Extra Virgin Olive Oil and French Gray Sea Salt & Freshly ground pepper. Taste, but do not be to heavy on the salt or pepper as you will need to let this sit then you can add more (the flavors will intensify as they sit).
7. Place the pureed mixture with a lid on it ( I know this sounds nuts to remind you but … I have forgotten to place the lid on and it was a big mess… as I spilled it..LOL ) in the refrigerator for at least two hours or overnight.
8. Right before serving, take out the Gazpacho. Taste and adjust the seasoning accordingly.
9. Then pour into chilled bowls and garnish with your peppers & cucumbers.:) Drizzle with a little Spanish extra virgin olive oil and top with a sprig of nice fresh basil:)
10. Enjoy:)
Good knife skills 🙂
Thank you, Chef Susser:-):-) I owe a big part of my knife skills to you as you never settled for second best..and pratice pratice and more pratice:-):-) Thank you:-):-)
lots of good info in here! Looks tasty. A favorite soup for sure. The garnishes are especially fun 🙂
🙂 Thank you, Liz:) Garnishing is one of my favorite parts of this dish:) Funny thing is it takes a little more time.. but it looks so much better and we do eat with our eyes:)
So that’s how you peel a pepper. Never knew. Well, I always remove and discard the pith or ribs and seeds. But never the skin of a raw pepper. Must try that for salads 🙂
🙂 Johnny still working on the Pinning:) LOL:) We learned this in school.. and I have never gone back to not doing this:) It helps really brings out a nice flavor in the pepper.. and more people will eat them if you do this.. also it makes it much easier to cut into whatever sort of cut you want:) and your salad idea is wonderful… it makes the salad look that much prettier:)
Great post Poppy! I made gazpacho once; it was delicious but I have no idea if it tasted authentic as I actually haven’t tried a real Spanish gazpacho!! Love the fact that yours can be successfully adapted into a gf version. I have a few gf friends who will love this! Thanks for the wonderful tutorial xx
Thank you, Laura:) I served this to GF folks and non-GF folks, they all enjoyed it:) The nice thing about this is that it is really healthy & it makes a lovely presentation.. sky’s the limit as to how you want to present it.. it also looks great in a martini glass or a wine glass:) Let me know what your GF friends think of it:)
Oh, I will do! Thanks Poppy (love the idea of the wine glass presentation!)