Recipe Index

Spanish | Watermelon Gazpachovegan

Posted on December 8, 2014

I got this recipe from the Nom Nom Paleo cookbook. I did a little research and found that Watermelon Gazpacho was a recipe first published in The Virginia Housewife cookbook in 1824. While technically this recipe is American, I filed it under Spanish because of it's Spanish influences and so that I would serve it with other Spanish food.

Yield: 8 cups

watermelon gazpacho

Ingredients

2 pounds ripe heirloom tomatoes

1 hothouse cucumber (approximately 1 pound), peeled

2 small shallots, coarsely chopped

1 medium red bell pepper, seeded, cored, and diced

4 fresh cliantro stalks with leaves

3 cups cubed and seeded watermelon (about 1 pound)

2 tablespoons sherry vinegar

1/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil, plus extra for garnish

1 teaspoon kosher salt

freshly ground black pepper

pinch of red pepper flakes (optional)

 

Method

Fill a large pot with water and bring it to a boil on the stove. In the meantime, fill a large bowl with water and ice.

Cut a small X on the bottom of each tomato with a sharp paring knife. Once the water reaches a rolling boil, carefully drop the tomatoes into the pot and blanch for 30 seconds. Transfer the tomatoes to the bowl of ice water.

After the tomatoes chill in the bowl for a minute or two, slide their skins off. Core and roughly chop them, reserving all the juice and seeds.

Finely dice one-third of the cucumber and set aside to garnish the finished soup. Roughly chop up the rest of the cucumber.

Toss the tomatoes, cucumber, shallots, bell pepper, and cilantro into a blender and purée until the vegetables are liquefied. Make sure to cover the lid with a towel to reduce splashes and splatters.

Add the watermelon, vinegar, olive oil, salt, pepper, and red pepper flakes (if desired) to the puréed vegetables, and blend until smooth. Taste and adjust for seasoning.

Refrigerate the soup in the blender cup for a least 4 hours or until fully chilled. The ingredients may separate while resting in the refrigerator, so just prior to serving, place the blender cup back on the base and blitz the soup again to recombine.

To serve, ladle the gazpacho into chilled cups or bowls. Top with a drizzle of olive oil, the reserved cucumber, and freshly cracked pepper.

 

(Ref. "Watermelon Gazpacho" recipe, Nom Nom Paleo, page 116.)