Recipe Friday: 7/13 Summertime Gazpacho

Happy Friday everyone! Sorry for not posting last week, but I was paddle boating on Stowe Lake in Golden Gate park, enjoying the unusually nice summer weather. As for this week, I went to the Alemany farmer's market last Saturday and got some amazing produce... but the tomatoes really were the best purchase, and I got them in excess, so I decided to give you a recipe for gazpacho. It's a great way to put some delicious summer tomatoes to use without having to cook them. This is a simple chilled soup that can be made many ways, but in this recipe I am keeping the tomatoes the star because they are so sweet and juicy right now. This soup can be made in a mixer or blender, but I prefer to use and immersion blender, but whatever you have around that will get these veggies into more of a soup consistency. This dish can be made ahead of time, to allow the flavors to come together... you can serve this a la cart, top with some avocado, or some grilled shrimp, add corn or even jalapenos for a kick. This soup would be great paired with a nice crisp white wine, like a Sancerre, or a nice dry French rose! As always Happy cooking!

Summertime Gazpacho
6 (large) ripe tomatoes, chopped (if using smaller tomatoes you will need more like 2 lbs)
1 red onion, chopped
1 english cucumber, chopped
1 orange (ore red) bell pepper, chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
1/2 cup red wine vinegar
1/4 cup good olive oil
1 lemon, juice, and zest if desired
2 tspn sugar
5-6 dashes pepper infused vinegar (or whatever kind of hot sauce you have handy will do)
2-4 cups vegetable stock (use just what you need for the texture you desire)
1 tspn fresh oregano
1 tspn fresh thyme
salt and pepper to taste

* place all ingredients (except the stock) into your mixer. Blend, add stock gradually until your desired consistency is reached. Place in a non reactive (ie not metal) container and store in fridge for 2 hours or more (it allows the flavors to come together). Serve chilled, garnish with grated parmesean, avocado, corn, or whatever sounds goods to you. Enjoy.