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Please Fave the Original Submission~here.

A very 'cool' recipe for the summer, from !

Open For Critique / Constructive Criticism

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A friend is visiting from out of town for the week, and it's been a culinary adventure - I've never had to cook for a vegetarian, and coming up with meatless meals has been somewhat of a challenge. So, today, I decided to make something I've been wanting to make for some years now: gazpacho. The recipe I used was created by Chef John of the Food Wishes blog. It turned out better than I expected, and that's really saying something since I don't generally like fresh tomato.

The original recipe can be found here. -> http://foodwishes.blogspot.com/2011.....led-stale.html

Ingredients

4 large vine-ripened tomatoes, peeled and diced
1/2 English cucumber, diced
1/2 cup red bell pepper, diced
1/4 cup green onion, minced
2 or 3 cloves garlic, minced finely

1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp ground cumin (or 3/4 tsp whole cumin)
Pinch dried oregano
Cayenne, to taste (I used about 3/4 tsp)
Freshly ground pepper, to taste

1 pint cherry or grape tomatoes
1 lime, juiced or to taste
1 tsp Worcestershire sauce
1 tbsp balsamic vinegar
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil

chiffonade of fresh basil, or cilantro if you're a heathen
Cotija cheese crumbles

Instructions

Combine the diced tomatoes, cucumber, pepper, green onion, and garlic in a large bowl. Stir in the dry spices and mix thoroughly. Put the cherry/grape tomatoes into a blender with the sauce, vinegar, and oil, and blend it all until smooth (about a minute). Pour the cherry tomato puree through a strainer into the bowl with the diced veggies. Now, if you're like me and prefer your gazpacho less chunky, scoop maybe half of the mixture back into the blender and pulse until it's as small as you want it - I stopped when it looked like a fine salsa, with still-distinguishable components - then return to the bowl with everything else. Gazpacho is meant to be served very, very cold, so pop the bowl into your fridge for between two and eight hours, so that it can chill and the flavors can mingle.

Ladle the soup into cold bowls and top with a small heap of the basil chiffonade and a generous sprinkling of the cheese crumbles; serve with a crusty bread.

Enjoy!

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Allergy warning – please read all recipes carefully
and be aware of any allergies or sensitivities that may affect your health and well-being