The Silver Palate Gazpacho!
Once spring has sprung, we immediately start making dishes that are fitting for warmer weather. We usually start with gazpacho and always turn to my mom’s Gazpacho recipe from The Silver Palate Cookbook. It’s tried and true and loved by the adults and the kiddos. We like to ladle the gazpacho into chilled heavy mugs as a sippable first course while our main courses are grilling. Happy Spring and enjoy!
Recipe yields 8-10 portions
INGREDIENTS:
- 6 large ripe tomatoes
- 2 red bell peppers
- 2 medium-size yellow onions
- 2 large shallots
- 2 large cucumbers
- ½ cup red wine vinegar
- ½ cup olive oil
- 1½ cups canned tomato juice
- 3 eggs, lightly beaten (Optional – feel free to omit)
- ½ cup chopped fresh dill
- Pinch of cayenne pepper
- Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
PREPARATION:
- Wash the tomatoes and peppers. Core and coarsely chop the tomatoes; save the juices. Stem, seed, and coarsely chop the peppers. Peel and coarsely chop the onions and shallots. Peel, seed, and coarsely chop the cucumbers.
- In a bowl whisk together the vinegar, olive oil, reserved tomato juices, canned tomato juice, and eggs.
- In a blender or a food processor, purée the vegetables in small batches, adding the tomato juice mixture as necessary to keep the blades from clogging. Do not purée completely; the gazpacho should retain some of its crunch.
- Stir in the dill, cayenne, and salt and pepper. Cover and chill for at least 4 hours.
- To serve, stir, taste, and correct the seasoning, and ladle into chilled soup bowls or mugs.
