Fresh Summer Gazpacho

Gazpacho is the perfect summer soup. Served cold and easy to make, it’s also a nutritional powerhouse. It contains loads of lycopene, vitamin A, vitamin C and other antioxidants to keep you looking and feeling your best, and lots of fiber to help keep your belly flat.

There are tons of variations of gazpacho made around the world, below is my favorite way to make it with a few variations to try. Enjoy!

Fresh Summer Gazpacho
Prep Time: 15 min
Total Time: 3+ hours (to chill)
Serves 2-4

Ingredients:

• 1 cucumber, unpeeled and cut into ½ inch thick slices
• 5-6 Roma tomatoes, quartered
• 1 red bell pepper, seeded and chopped into large pieces
• 2 shallots, peeled
• 1 garlic clove, peeled
• 1½ tbsp red wine vinegar
• Juice of 1 lemon
• 1 tbsp raw honey or raw agave nectar
• 1 + ½ tsp sea salt
• ½ tsp black pepper
• ½ jalapeno, seeded (for heat, optional)
• 1 avocado, peeled and sliced for garnish (optional)
• 3 tbsp chopped flat-leaf parsley for garnish (optional)

Recipe:
Mince the garlic and shallots in the food processor (about 20 seconds). Add the rest of the ingredients (expect the avocado and parsley) to the food processor, reserving 1/3 of the cucumber, ½ tsp salt and the olive oil. Turn on the food processor and drizzle in the olive oil, processing until the desired texture is achieved (about 20 seconds for chunky and 1 minute for smooth). Add the remaining ½ tsp salt if needed. Chop and reserve the remaining cucumber for garnish. Chill covered in the refrigerator at least three hours, but preferably eight. Eat within 24 hours.

Serve in soup bowls and garnish with the reserved chopped cucumber, avocado, and chopped parsley. Add whole black beans or organic hemp seeds (for protein) to make this a complete meal.

Spanish Variation:
Add 1-2 cups dried artisan bread (ciabatta or a baguette work perfectly) to the food processor with the rest of the ingredients. Start with 1 cup, and add from there if desired. You may need to add ½ cup purified water or tomato juice to thin out the soup a little. (Use dried bread, not croutons. Dry out the bread in the oven at 250° for 45 minutes or leave it out on the counter overnight). Don’t use fresh bread; you’ll end up with a gooey, doughy mess.

Mexican Variation:
Add ½ tsp cumin to the food processor with the rest of the ingredients. Garnish with fresh cilantro, crème fresh (or sour cream) and/or tortilla chips.

Tips:

• 1lb. of any tomatoes work in this recipe, I prefer the (Roma) plum variety here, but any will work.
• ½ cup of any kind of chopped onion can be substituted for the shallots. Shallots have a milder flavor than most onions, are available in almost all produce departments, and work really well in this dish.
• Same goes for the vinegar, I prefer red wine vinegar here, but any will do. 
• The avocado is also yummy blended into the soup, it will just change the color, flavor and texture a little.
• You can make this soup in a standard blender as well, just press the garlic and finely mince the shallots by hand, and add them with the rest of the ingredients to blend.

The basic recipe is gluten-free and low-glycemic. The Mexican variation is gluten-free, and is low glycemic without the tortilla chips.