Gazpacho Soup¶

Ingredients¶

• 225 g (½ lb) green peppers (about 1–2 peppers), seeds removed
• ½ cucumber, peeled (reserve ¼ for garnish if desired)
• 1 garlic clove
• Few coriander (cilantro) leaves
• ¼ mild chilli pepper, seeds removed
• 50 g (2 oz) day-old white bread, crusts removed, soaked then squeezed dry
• ½ mild Spanish onion
• 1 tbsp balsamic vinegar
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 160 ml (⅓ pt) iced water (plus ice cubes to serve)
• Sea salt and black pepper

Garnish (optional)¶

• 2 tomatoes, skinned, seeded, finely diced
• ½ green pepper, finely diced
• ¼ peeled cucumber, finely diced
• 2 slices stale white bread (for croutons), crusts removed, diced and fried

Instructions¶

1. Prepare vegetables: skin tomatoes (if using for garnish) and set aside; seed peppers; peel cucumber portion; dice garnish vegetables and reserve chilled.
2. Soak bread 30 minutes in cold water; squeeze dry.
3. In a blender combine peppers, cucumber, garlic, coriander leaves, chilli, soaked bread, onion, vinegar, olive oil, and iced water; blend until roughly but uniformly chopped (retain some texture).
4. Season with salt and black pepper; chill well. Add a few ice cubes if serving immediately.
5. Fry diced bread for croutons in a little olive oil until golden (if using).
6. Serve soup cold with separate bowls of diced tomato, pepper, cucumber, and croutons for topping.