Gazpacho is a cool summer soup of fresh vegetables. (David Boraks/DavidsonNews.net)

Our backyard gardens are beginning to bear fruit, and the variety of summer produce at local farmers’ markets is expanding. Fresh tomatoes, cucumbers, peppers and red onions are easy find. Put them all together, add a bit of garlic, and you’re on your way to a cool summer dinner of gazpacho.

We had our first gazpacho of the season this week, dining on our side porch in the late-spring evening light. I think of this as a simple meal: Prepare and chill a batch of this rich, chilled tomato soup. Procure a bread – we had an asiago cheese baguette from the local grocery. And serve it with your favorite red wine – I went for a glass of the Coppola Claret, a robust red that goes just right with the tangy soup.

My cookbook tells me gazpacho originated in the Andalusian region of Spain. Today, it’s a summer staple not only there, but throughout Spain, Portugal and Latin America.

Preparing gazpacho is mostly about washing and chopping vegetables, snagging a few herbs from the garden, and blending. A blender or food processor makes this meal a cinch. But it also works well with finely chopped ingredients.

Main ingredients in a typical gazpacho.

Most recipes call for tomatoes, green peppers, cucumbers, olive oil and garlic. The soup can vary according to your tastes and the vegetables and herbs available. Here’s the recipe I made this week.

GAZPACHO
(makes 6 servings)

• 6 roma tomatoes, peeled and seeded
• 1 large green bell pepper, seeded and membrane removed
• 1 medium red onion, peeled and sliced
• Several large cloves of fresh garlic
• 1 cup fresh herbs, to taste. I used basil and parsley. Other suggestions include chives and tarragon.
• 1 medium sized cucumber, peeled and seeded

• 2-3 cups stock
• 1/2 cup olive oil
• 2 tsp salt
• 1/4 cup lemon juice
• (1/2 tsp paprika)
• (dash of cayenne or pepper sauce, optional, if your red onions don’t satisfy your taste buds for tangy)

A food processor makes gazpacho a cinch.

Chop the vegetables to similar sizes, and blend them all together in the food processor. When they begin to form a thick melange, add the stock (I used the stock from our last roast chicken), olive oil, lemon juice, salt and any additional spices desired.

I recommend making the soup ahead and chilling until ready to serve. You can add crushed ice or a couple of ice cubes to make it just a bit cooler on the table.

ADDITIONS: Some recipes use red wine vinegar instead of lemon juice. Some also suggest garnishing with decoratively sliced vegetables – tomatoes, cucumbers, chives – an herb, or your favorite croutons.

HAVE A RECIPE TO SHARE?

Have a favorite recipe to share? DavidsonNews.net welcomes submissions of short articles and recipes. Photos are a bonus; if you can’t come up with one, we’ll make your recipe and take our own. Send an email to editor David Boraks, editor@davidsonnews.net.