Summery Tomato Gazpacho with Peach + Cucumber Salsa
I went to the Farmer’s Market this past weekend for the first time in a while and it was just what I needed to get re-inspired in the kitchen. I love being surrounded by fresh, seasonal produce and chatting with passionate, knowledgeable farmers.
My trip to the market inspired this gazpacho, which is one of my favorite ways to highlight in-season summer produce. It’s the perfect quick but insanely flavor-forward meal for hot summer nights.
It’s important to note that I’ve never been obsessed with gazpacho…I have this vision of a chunky soup which isn’t appealing to me at all. This version is far from that – it’s silky, creamy and luxurious (which blows my mind since it’s only fresh fruit + vegetables, sherry vinegar, olive oil and salt!). Slowly adding the olive oil as you blend the base ensures the end product is super creamy and emulsified. The key step is passing the blended gazpacho through a fine mesh sieve to get rid of any fibrous bits.
I love serving it with crunchy elements – peach + cucumber salsa and grilled crusty bread – to contrast the smooth texture of the soup. Trust me, you will LOVE this recipe and make it over and over again in the summertime!
Serves 4
INGREDIENTS
2 lbs tomatoes, core removed and quartered
3/4 lb cucumber, roughly diced and divided (~4-5 persian cucumbers or ~1 large english cucumber)
1 1/2 medium shallots, skin removed and divided
1 large clove garlic, peeled
1 large yellow peach, divided
2 Tbsp + 1 tsp Sherry Vinegar, divided (can use red wine vinegar if you don’t have Sherry vinegar)
Kosher Salt
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
High quality extra virgin olive oil (to finish)
Fresh basil (to finish)
METHOD
Add the tomatoes, cucumber (setting aside a 3-inch piece of cucumber for the salsa), 1 whole shallot, the garlic clove, 1/2 of the peach, 2 Tbsp of the Sherry vinegar and 1 tsp of kosher salt to a blender.
Blend the mixture until homogeneous and very smooth. Then, with the blender running on low, slowly stream in the 1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil. The mixture will be creamy, smooth and emulsified.
Pour the mixture into a fine mesh sieve that you’ve placed over a large bowl. Use a ladle or spoon to push the mixture through the sieve and into the bowl below. Be patient – it might take a few minutes to push the entire mixture through the sieve but it’s worth it! This step removes the fibrous bits of the vegetables + fruit and results in a silky, creamy gazpacho.
Cover the bowl of gazpacho with plastic wrap and transfer to the fridge to chill for a minimum of 2 hours (I sometimes allow it to chill overnight before eating). This step is important to allow the flavors to develop + the soup to get nice and cold.
While the gazpacho is chilling, make the salsa. Finely dice the remaining 1/2 of a shallot and transfer to a small bowl with the remaining 1 tsp Sherry vinegar. While that’s macerating, finely dice the cucumber that you set aside earlier and finely dice the remaining 1/2 of the peach. Add both the cucumber and peach to the shallot + vinegar mixture and stir. Finish with a drizzle of good quality extra virgin olive oil and a pinch of salt, to taste.
Serve the gazpacho straight from the fridge in chilled bowls and top with a spoonful of the salsa, a drizzle of good quality EVOO and some fresh basil leaves. Enjoy with some crusty grilled bread.