Patchwork recipes: Gazpacho

This week's Patchwork column discusses the summery gazpacho, a vegetable soup served cold. Head over here to read Kate Gridley's thoughts on using the late summer bounty, then try some of the recipes below!

Red Gazpacho
Serves 6

• 1 green bell pepper, seeded and roughly chopped
• 1 red bell pepper, seeded, and roughly chopped
• 1/2 cucumber, peeled, seeded and roughly chopped
• 1 fresh red chili, seeded and roughly chopped
• 1 onion, roughly chopped
• 3 cups roughly chopped ripe plum tomatoes
• 3 3/4 cups passata (strained pureed tomatoes) or tomato juice
• 2 tablespoons red-wine vinegar
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 tablespoon caster sugar
• salt and freshly ground black pepper
• ice — optional garnish

Reserve small pieces of the bell peppers and chop, putting aside for garnish.

Process all remaining ingredients in a food processor — possibly in batches.

Press soup through a strainer, pressing it to extract maximum amount of liquid.

Adjust seasoning and chill for at least six hours. When ready to serve, ladle into bowls and garnish with bell peppers, and alittle ice, if you wish.

White Gazpacho

From Malaga, Spain — serves 4

• 1 cup blanched white almonds
• 2 garlic cloves, chopped
• 3 slices of day-old white bread, crusts removed
• 4 cups cold chicken stock
• 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
• 3 tablespoons white wine vinegar
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup halved seedless grapes
• 1/2 cup croutons

Toast the almonds lightly in a 350 degree oven for 15 minutes.

Process almonds and garlic in a food processor.

Soak bread in 1/4 cup cold water and then squeeze dry. Add bread to processor and process till smooth. Add chicken stock, olive oil, vinegar, and salt and process till smooth. Strain soup through a medium sieve. Cover and refrigerate till well chilled. Stir in grapes just before serving and garnish with croutons.

Gazpacho

From Cordoba, Spain. This soup involves baking the vegetables first, which gives it a slightly smoky flavor, one that is richer than gazpacho made with raw ingredients.

• 2 pounds tomatoes
• 2 red bell peppers
• 2 pickling cucumbers, peeled, seeded and chopped
• 4 garlic cloves, finely chopped
• 2 tablespoons sherry vinegar, or to taste
• 1/2 cup extra-virgin oil
• 4 1/2 inch-thick slices of country style bread (big), crusts discarded
• 1/2 teaspoon minced fresh tarragon
• 2 teaspoons salt
• I teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Place tomatoes and pepper in a single layer in a shallow roasting pan. Roast for 30 minutes. Remove tomatoes, transferring them to a glass bowl, and continue to roast peppers till they are lightly charred, which will take roughly 15 minutes more. Transfer peppers, and any juices to another glass bowl, and let stand, covered, for about 30 minutes.

Holding over bowl, peel tomatoes and tear flesh into pieces. Discarding stems and seeds, tear peppers to pieces, adding to tomatoes. Pour any pepper juices through a sieve into the tomato mixture. Stir in cucumbers, garlic, vinegar and oil. Cut bread into one-inch cubes, and soak in water for 10 minutes. Drain the bread — don’t squeeze — and add to tomato/pepper mixture. Add tarragon, salt and pepper. Toss thoroughly. Refrigerate at least six hours, preferably over night. Then puree mixture. Chill. Season, if desired, with more vinegar, salt and pepper.

Another red gazpacho

(Note the differences with the preceding recipes — luckily, they are ALL good, and that is because of the time of year and the sun-ripened fresh ingredients. It’s hard to go wrong.)

• 3 pounds of ripe tomatoes, cored, peeled, seeded, and roughly chopped 1 red or yellow bell pepper, stemmed, peeled if desired, seeded, and roughly chopped 2 kirby cucumbers, peeled, seeded, and roughly chopped.
• 4 slices good stale white bread, crusts removed
• 6 cups of cold water
• 2 cloves garlic, peeled
• 1/4 cup sherry or good wine vinegar, or to taste
• croutons – an optional garnish

Set aside some of the chopped cucumber, tomato and pepper for garnish.

Soak bread in 1 cup of water for 5 minutes, then squeeze out excess water.

Place bread in container of food processor, and process with tomato, pepper, cucumber and water, as well as garlic and vinegar ’til smooth — THEN add olive oil slowly, with machine running. Season with salt and pepper and refrigerate.

Check seasoning just before serving. Garnish with reserved tomato, cucumber and pepper and optional croutons

More baked gazpacho

Another gazpacho with many MORE varieties of baked fresh vegetables!

• 4 ripe tomatoes
• 2 small or 1 medium eggplant, peeled and cut into large chunks
• 4 small or 2 medium zucchini, cut into large chunks
• 2 medium onions, chopped
• 10 cloves of garlic peeled
• 1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
• 1/4 cup sherry vinegar
• salt and fresh ground pepper
• 4 cups of water
• 4 slices of stale bread, crusts removed, torn up
• croutons for garnish

Preheat oven to 400. Combine tomatoes, eggs, zucchini, onions, garlic, and olive oil in shallow roasting pan, and roast until eggplant is tender, about 30 minutes, stirring occasionally to prevent sticking. Turn mixture into a bowl, and add vinegar, salt and pepper, water and bread. Refrigerate overnight.

In food processor, blend till smooth. Put through mill or sieve and strain.

Check seasoning for the right tanginess with the vinegar, and the nutty flavor of the olive oil, garnish, and serve.

Quick Gazpacho

This is a coarser gazpacho and is pictured on the page in the little cordial glass.

• 1 1/2 cup tomato juice
• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 tablespoons of sherry wine vinegar, or red wine vinegar
• 1 medium to large Spanish onion
• 2 cloves garlic
• 5 large ripe tomatoes, peeled, seeded and chopped
• 1 large cuke, peeled, seeded, chopped
• 1small red bell pepper
• 1 small green bell pepper
• 2 tablespoons minced cilantro
• salt and pepper

Combine juice, oil, vinegar, onion and garlic

Stir in tomatoes, cukes, peppers, and cilantro. Season with salt and pepper. Refrigerate.