Watermelon Gazpacho Thriller!

Summertime is in full swing and nothing says summer in Texas like cold watermelon. Recently I was looking around for a new and exciting cold picnic dish to take to a family reunion. I stumbled on a Watermelon Gazpacho recipe that had my mouth watering as I read it! It beckoned me to the kitchen where I just happened to have a watermelon in the fridge.

Gazpacho, should you not be familiar with the name, is a cold soup, usually made with a fresh tomato base, and came from Spain. Mixed with a few other fresh ingredients, it is blended smooth and served cold. Doing my research, I discovered there are as many different ways to make gazpacho as there are people willing to submit recipes online…yes, that many!!!!

The recipe I made was, as you might expect, tweaked a bit to suit my taste and supply of fresh ingredients. Some watermelon gazpacho recipes called for only watermelon as the main base, the one I made had both watermelon and fresh tomatoes from my garden. They were too pretty and tasty to ignore! This recipe does not make a lot but you can modify to serve more. Here is what I did:

Ingredients:
Appx 2 lbs. ripe summer tomatoes, chunked
1 med. white onion, coarsely chopped
1 green bell pepper, coarsely chopped
1 med. cucumber, peeled, chopped
1 clove garlic, halved
small bunch cilantro chopped

Small bunch fresh sweet basil (can use Thai or other variety or skip altogether)

2 skinny hot peppers chopped – use based on heat tolerance – I like it hot!

Appx. 2 lbs. watermelon, seeded
A baseball-sized piece of stale French bread, broken into pieces - optional
1/2 tsp. paprika
salt, to taste
granulated sugar, to taste – optional, I did not add sugar but you can
1/4 C. good quality extra-virgin olive oil
2 tbsp. red wine vinegar, all I had was apple cider vinegar

Instructions:

1. Cut all of your fruit and veggies as directed above. Combine veggies, garlic, watermelon, bread, and paprika. Stir. Add salt, sugar, and pepper to taste. Add olive oil and vinegar.

2. Blend mixture until smooth. If you don’t have a large bowl and a stick blender, you’ll have to work in batches in blender or food processor. It’s a pain but it’s worth it.

3. Test for seasoning and add more if needed.

4. Strain through a wire mesh strainer if desired. Or skip this step and eat it as is! I did not drain. Put in fridge for at least an hour or more to blend flavors. Can be made day before if serving for a dinner party. Just garnish right before serving.

5. Serve with a drizzle of olive oil over top, or sprinkle with a mixture minced watermelon, onion, mint, and tomato (if serving in bowl, I drank it from a cup!)

Let me know what you think!! I love to hear from you.