Gazpacho Andaluz

(Andaluz = adjective for anything from Andalucía, the southern part of Spain where I live)

As they say, there are as many different gazpacho recipes as families in Spain. I'd say this is as true as it is for the perfect enchilada for a New Mexican - to each his own! So this version is a mix of several, with my own little tweaks. Perfect for coolin' off during these blistering-hot days we're having lately here.

Ingredients

• 2 lbs. very ripe tomatoes (about  8 medium)
• 2 small cucumbers
• 1 slice old, hard bread (or plain croutons)
  (For Andalucians: half a pitufo is perfect!)
• 2 cloves garlic
• 2 peppers, red or green
• 2/3 cup (150ml) extra-virgin olive oil
• 2 tbs. red wine vinegar
• 2 tsp. salt
• 1 cup cold water

Prep

1. Peel the cucumbers, and remove stems and seeds from the peppers.
2. Cut the vegetables in pieces that your blender can manage.
3. Cut the bread in pieces as well, and soak it in water for a few minutes.
4. Add everything to the blender. Blend until completely smooth, adjusting consistency if needed - too watery, add bread; too thick, add water and/or a little oil.

Personally my favorite is somewhat thick, but just liquidy enough to drink through a straw. It should be served über-cold, either right out of the fridge or by adding ice cubes to it. This works as the perfect pre-lunch appetizer, while everyone's out melting in the sun.


Finally, for those who want to serve it with a meal, the absolute best is to sprinkle some chopped jamón serrano, hard-boiled egg and cucumber on top. ¡Buen provecho!

Makes about 2 liters.

Some possible mods:

• carrots instead of bread
• extra garlic
• extra oil, or even better - oil served at table for each to add on top
• mild/sweet onion

P.S. Any brave first-timers who try this, please let me know what you think, for good or for bad. As I recommended here, you should never think of gazpacho as cold soup - it's in a class of its own!

Dagwood with Gazpacho

I´ll start the ball rolling with an overly-simple meal, which really can't even be considered a recipe per se. But if I set the bar low to begin with, it can only go up from here, right? Besides, this particular meal is a good glimpse into my current stage in life: a mix of American and Spanish classical fare.

Yet another blog is birthed

Hence a new blog is born - a drop in the sea of web presences. But I must confess, at least at the outset, my reasons for starting this:

• I love cooking, and wanted at least a minimal venue for sharing recipes and other cooking-related morsels I glean
• Above all, I needed an excuse to try out Blogger. So if a post ever seems off-the-wall, not at all related to cooking, nerdy to the core, well... you've had fair warning!

My culinary background is all over the place: (New) Mexican, southwestern American, and classical Spanish, with smidgens of others thrown in along the way by international friends. So, variation is the rule of the day here.


There you have it.