GHOSTLY GAZPACHO
scare away the summer heat with a gazpacho that will chill you to your bones
Ingredients (makes 4 bowls):
1 pound sungold tomatoes (or other yellow tomato)
1 pound peaches, peeled
1 small cucumber, seeded and peeled
1 bell pepper, seeded (red, yellow, or orange)
1/2 small red onion
1-2 cloves garlic
1 Tablespoon white wine vinegar
1-2 pieces white bread, crusts removed
3/4 cup olive oil
1 teaspoon salt
Optional spooky garnishes: purple basil, black lava salt, balsamic vinegar
Process:
Reserve a slice of peach, pepper, and red onion to make garnishes. Roughly chop remaining fruits and vegetables then add to a baking sheet with 1 teaspoon of salt. Transfer baking sheet to the freezer for 30 minutes to chill. Meanwhile, tear bread into chunks and add to a bowl with 1 Tablespoon white wine vinegar to soften. Remove baking sheet from freezer and allow the vegetables to thaw for a few minutes. Transfer to a blender along with soaked bread and let sit a couple minutes to further soften bread in juice. Puree mixture then slowly drizzle in olive oil. Season with additional salt and black pepper to taste. Press gazpacho through a sieve to remove any tough skins and create a silky texture. Refrigerate until ready to serve.
Serving suggestion: create garnishes for guests to choose their own adventure. Use a small cookie cutter to make bat or pumpkin shapes with peach slices, red onion, and bell pepper. Use festive hole punches to make shaped bats from purple basil leaves.
Serving suggestion: chill bowls in fridge in advance. Serve bowls on a tray with dry ice to keep the soups cool and ghostly in the summer heat. Always wear gloves or use tongs when handling dry ice (it’s around -78C/-109F!) and place in a metal dish to prevent cracking any glass. Never consume dry ice.
Notes and substitutions:
use very ripe tomatoes and peaches for maximum juiciness and flavor
increase or decrease garlic and onion depending on preference
substitute other vinegars such as sherry (more traditional to gazpacho) or red wine
the bonus of freezing the vegetables first is that the gazpacho can be eaten without a lengthy chill time in the refrigerator
recipe can be easily scaled up for larger crowds