Refreshing Summer Gazpacho
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Right after I gave birth to our son, my mother-in-law stayed with us for the first week to help with the baby and household chores. At the time I had a huge appetite and I could’ve eaten anything. Instead however, I was treated like a queen.
My mother-in-law is an excellent cook and she treated us to some excellent food not only during that week, but also for a long time after she left. Anything she made, she doubled in size and packed our freezer to the fullest. This was such an amazing help. With our newborn baby and sleepless nights, to not have to worry about the food was a huge treat. Thanks again Mom! I will always remember that 🙂
One of the dishes she made was a chilled Gazpacho soup. I cannot even express myself well enough to tell you how much I love Gazpacho. Fresh tomatoes, peppers, cucumbers….! It’s so delightful and refreshing on a hot summer day.
Unfortunately I didn’t eat enough, or shall I say: as much as I would’ve liked to eat last summer. The reason being is that I was breastfeeding and had heard that tomatoes are not recommended during that time; so I was hesitant and a little afraid as to how my little boy would react. I ate a little bit, and he didn’t have any reaction to it, but I didn’t want to push my luck.
Needless to say, this Refreshing Summer Gazpacho was on my mind for the entire year. My mother-in-law was recently visiting for a couple of days and she asked me what she can do or how she can help, and I only had one little request: “Please make us Gazpacho Mom!” She was thrilled.
So I went food shopping for the weekend and I got all the ingredients that Mom needed for her amazing chilled soup. I left the kitchen entirely for her so she could work her magic. I only took the photos of this amazing soup, and cannot take any credit for its creation. This whole dish is my Mom’s. Kudos! In return I made her this amazing grilled salmon with simple homemade teriyaki sauce.
So…so…..delicious. This time I was able to eat as much as I wanted and my little boy ate it too. And he loved it too. I can’t believe how much has changed since he was born.
Here he is in the first week of his life, when Mom was visiting. Actually Regina took this photo when he was 6 days.
And here he is a year later; a big boy who can now eat Gazpacho…
My Mother-in-Law is also a big foodie and she has a little catering business on a side. If you live on the Connecticut shoreline you may want to check out her page and consider using her for your next party (you can thank me later). I know I’m biased, but her food is really elegant and outstanding. You can find her on her fan page on Facebook: Nancy’s Table.
Adapted from Ina Garten.
Ingredients
- 1 English , seedless cucumber
- 2 red or green bell peppers
- 4 medium tomatoes
- 3 garlic cloves
- 1 medium red onion
- 3 cups of V8 vegetable juice
- 1/4 cup of white or red wine vinegar
- 1/4 cup of Extra Virgin Olive Oil
- Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
- Italian parsley or basil for garnish
Instructions
- Into the food processor put separately cubed cucumber, peppers, onions and tomatoes.
- Pulse a few times until coarsely chopped
- Combine all the vegetable in a large bowl
- Add garlic, vegetable juice, vinegar, olive oil, salt and pepper
- Mix together and refrigerate for at least 1 hour
- Garnish with parsley or basil before serving
If you like the freshness of this dish, you may also like this quinoa pasta with no-cook tomato sauce.
That looks so refreshing and yummy for a hot day.
Oh my goodness. I had avoided gazpacho all of my life since the thought of cold soup was not appealing.But then I love salsa and saw this post and boy, am i glad i tried it. I can understand why you would want to constantly eat it. 🙂 This will be part of my rotation, especially during the upcoming summer months.