eat your fucking vegetables.

Mario Batali’s Gazpacho

Mario Batali is a celebrity Italian chef whose name is behind over 10 restaurants along with a number of cookbooks and TV shows to his credit. He serves on the board for Food Bank for NYC, and recently launched his own foundation.

I never thought it would be fun or tasty to eat cold soup,  but gazpacho never disappoints.

I usually skip the bread, but a traditional gazpacho recipe calls for croutons, so I left it in here for you.

I also go for heirloom tomatoes instead of beefsteak tomatoes. Striped Germans, Brandywines, Green Zebras, Black Princes or Mr. Stripeys are good choices. Check out your local farmer’s market for different heirloom varieties. I buy mine from Wilklow Orchards at Ft. Greene & Brooklyn Boro Hall Greenmarket

Yield: 6 servings

Ingredients
5 very ripe beefsteak tomatoes, quartered-plus 1 cut into 1/4 inch dice, set aside

2 large english cucumbers, peeled, quartered- plus 1 cut into 1/4 inch dice, set aside

2 red bell peppers, stemmed, seeded, quartered- plus 1 cut into 1/4 inch dice, set aside

2 small jalapenos, seeded and stemmed (be careful not to touch your face or eyes when handling hot peppers)

1 small red onion, peeled, quartered-plus 1 cut into 1/4 inch dice, set aside

2 slices day old white bread

3 bread slices cut into 1/2 inch croutons

3 cloves garlic, peeled

1/2 cup water

4 tbsp red wine vinegar

1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil, plus more to drizzle

1 cups ice

salt and pepper to taste

Instructions

1. Toast croutons in extra virgin olive oil in a pan till deep golden brown.
2. Peel the cucumber and stem and seed the peppers.
3. Tear bread into pieces.
4. Place half of the vegetables, bread, water, vinegar, oil and ice into the Vita-Mix container and secure lid.
5. Select Variable 1.
6. Turn machine on and quickly increase to Variable 5. Blend for 15-20 seconds, using the tamper to press the ingredients into the blades.
7. Repeat with other half of ingredients.
8. Be sure and season each batch nicely with salt and freshly ground pepper while still in the Vita-Mix.
9. Pour soup into a pitcher, cover and refrigerate until very cold. Place garnishes in small bowls and refrigerate as well. When ready to enjoy, stir well with a spoon.
10. Serve in shallow bowls with the garnish bowls on the side and drizzle each serving with a little more spanish extra virgin olive oil.