I received the recipe for Cook's Illustrated Creamy Gazpacho Andaluz via email. I am not normally a fan of cold soup, but this particular recipe stood out as one I wanted to try.
Creamy Gazpacho Andaluz
Cook's Illustrated, July 201
Serves 4 to 6
For ideal flavor, allow the gazpacho to sit in the refrigerator overnight before serving. Red wine vinegar can be substituted for the sherry vinegar. Although we prefer to use kosher salt in this soup, half the amount of table salt can be used. Serve the soup with additional extra-virgin olive oil, sherry vinegar, ground black pepper, and diced vegetables for diners to season and garnish their own bowls as desired.
Ingredients
3 pounds (about 6 medium) ripe tomatoes , cored1 small cucumber , peeled, halved, and seeded
1 medium green bell pepper , halved, cored and seeded
1 small red onion , peeled and halved
2 medium garlic cloves , peeled and quartered
1 small serrano chile , stemmed and halved lengthwise
Kosher salt
1 slice high quality white sandwich bread , crust removed, torn into 1-inch pieces
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil , plus extra for serving
2 tablespoons sherry vinegar , plus extra for serving (see note)
2 tablespoons finely minced parsley , chives, or basil leaves
Ground black pepper
Instructions
1. Roughly chop 2 pounds of tomatoes, half of cucumber, half of bell pepper, and half of onion and place in large bowl. Add garlic, chile, and 1½ teaspoons salt; toss until well combined. Set aside.
2. Cut remaining tomatoes, cucumber, and pepper into ¼-inch dice; place vegetables in medium bowl. Mince remaining onion and add to diced vegetables. Toss with ½ teaspoon salt and transfer to fine-mesh strainer set over medium bowl. Set aside 1 hour.
3. Transfer drained diced vegetables to medium bowl and set aside. Add bread pieces to exuded liquid (there should be about ¼ cup) and soak 1 minute. Add soaked bread and any remaining liquid to roughly chopped vegetables and toss thoroughly to combine.
4. Transfer half of vegetable-bread mixture to blender and process 30 seconds. With blender running, slowly drizzle in ¼ cup oil and continue to blend until completely smooth, about 2 minutes. Strain soup through fine-mesh strainer into large bowl, using back of ladle or rubber spatula to press soup through strainer. Repeat with remaining vegetable-bread mixture and 1/4 cup olive oil.
5. Stir vinegar, minced herb, and half of diced vegetables into soup and season to taste with salt and black pepper. Cover and refrigerate overnight or for at least 2 hours to chill completely and develop flavors. Serve, passing remaining diced vegetables, olive oil, sherry vinegar, and black pepper separately.
(Kim's notes: I didn't quite use 1/2 cup of olive oil. It was closer to 6 tbsp. At the last minute I found I didn't have any sherry vinegar so I used 1 1/2 tbsp. white balsamic vinegar and 1/2 tbsp. sherry. For the herb, I used basil)
3/4 cup water
1/2 cup bulgur wheat
Salt
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1/4 cup chopped cilantro
1/4 cup pitted kalamata olives, chopped
2 tablespoons chopped mint, plus 2 mint sprigs (optional)
1/2 teaspoon sweet paprika
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
Freshly ground pepper
1 cup plain low-fat Greek yogurt
1/2 small European cucumber—peeled, halved, seeded and thinly sliced
1/2 small red onion, sliced paper thin
1 small garlic clove, minced
24 Isis candy or other cherry tomatoes, halved
12 mini pitas, top third cut off
4 ounces mixed baby greens
1. In a small saucepan, bring the water to a boil. Add the bulgur and 1/2 teaspoon of salt and return to a boil. Cover, remove from the heat and let stand until the water is absorbed, about 25 minutes. Drain the bulgur in a fine sieve, pressing to remove any excess liquid. Spread the bulgur on a plate and let cool.
2. In a medium bowl, whisk 2 tablespoons of the olive oil with 2 tablespoons of the lemon juice. Stir in the cilantro, olives, chopped mint, paprika and cumin. Add the bulgur and toss well. Season the salad with salt and pepper.
3. In a small bowl, mix the yogurt with the cucumber, onion, garlic and the remaining 1 tablespoon of lemon juice. Season with salt and pepper. In a another medium bowl, toss the tomatoes with the remaining 1 tablespoon of olive oil and season with salt and pepper.
4. Spoon the bulgur salad into the pitas then tuck in the baby greens and tomatoes. Top with the yogurt, garnish with the mint sprigs and serve.
(Kim's notes: I soaked the bulgher for longer than 20 minutes in a larger amount of water - I think it was more like 40 minutes, until it was a little chewy then I drained it and pressed as much excess water out as I could. I completely forgot to add the salad greens to the pitas -
sorry!)
I (Dani) decided to try 2 recipes that I make on a regular basis and don't really come from a cook book. I made salmon rolls and a tomato salad.Salmon Rolls
Whole Wheat Lavash Bread
Smoked Salmon
Cucumbers -- peeled and sliced thin
Boursin Cheese
This is really a recipe to eye ball the quantity on. Spread the Boursin on the lavash, not quite to the edge. Layer the smoked salmon and cucumber in rows. Roll, slice and serve.
Tomato SaladHeirloom Tomatoes
Buffalo Mozzarella
Fresh Basil
Olive Oil
Balsamic Vinegar
Salt and Pepper
This is really a recipe to eye ball the quantity on. Cut the tomatoes in 1" pieces and cut the mozzarella balls in half. Julienne the basil. Toss together in a bowl and add equal parts olive oil and vinegar (I used a blood orange balsamic). Add salt and pepper to taste.
Some time ago, I (Christine) had a delicious zucchini pesto dish at a party that I'd been wanting to duplicate. The No Cook theme seemed like the perfect time. Simply shred zucchini in the food processor, and mix in the amount of pesto that you like. For the pesto, I whirred together the following in a food processor:
- 2 cups tightly packed basil leaves
- 2 cloves garlic
- 1/4 cup grated romano (or parmesan) cheese
- 1/3 cup walnuts
- 1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
- 1/2 tbsp lemon juice
I wanted to balance the bright green zucchini dish with an orange vegetable one, so I decided to make a carrot slaw as well. I found a recipe for carrot-jicama slaw with a cumin-lime vinaigrette and decided to try it out. Unfortunately, I wasn't taking good measurements so these are all approximate. I also substituted lemon for the lime. I think for the future, I'd stick with the lime for its more distinctive flavor. Mix the below together and let sit in the refrigerator for at least a couple of hours.
- 3 carrots, shredded
- 1 medium (large?) jicama, shredded
- 6 radishes, shredded
- 3 Tbsp lemon juice
- 1 Tbsp cider vinegar
- 1 tsp cumin (I may have added another 1/2 tsp)
- 1/2 tsp salt
I (Lauren) made a couscous salad. I did have to boil water and orange juice for this dish, but I figure that it does not really count as cooking. I did make some modifications to the recipe: I used a little less orange juice in the initial couscous rehydration, and added orange juice instead of lemon juice when I added the olive oil. I also threw in some fresh peach as I had no dried fruit, and used craisins that I soaked in water instead of raisins. I also added some red bell pepper as I like red bell pepper. Finally, I used whole wheat couscous since the recipe was not specific.
For dessert, I (Rebecca) brought Cappuccino Parfaits from Martha Stewart's "Great Food Fast" cookbook. It was a quick and easy recipe that combines ricotta cheese, espresso powder and sugar in a food processor. The mixture is then chilled and served with bits of amaretti cookies on top. Couldn't be easier!
