Andalucian Gazpacho

Total Time: 2 hrs 15 mins Preparation Time: 15 mins Cook Time: 2 hrs

Ingredients

• Servings: 4
• 1 kg tomato, ripe, quartered (beefsteak and heirloom work best)
• 4 spring onions or 4 scallions, roughly chopped
• 3 garlic cloves
• 1/2 cucumber, peeled, roughly chopped (use hothouse or english cucumbers)
• 75 ml extra virgin olive oil (use a sweet or fruity rather than astringent oil for this recipe)
• 25 ml sherry wine vinegar
• 2 spring onions, finely sliced
• 1/2 red bell pepper, cored, seeded, minced
• 1/2 green bell pepper, cored, seeded, minced
• 1/4 cucumber, peeled, minced (use hothouse or english cucumbers)
• 3 hard-boiled eggs, peeled, minced
• 2 slices day-old crusty bread, cut into 2cm cubes
• olive oil (for shallow frying)
• extra virgin olive oil (to serve)

Recipe

• 1 blend tomatoes, spring onions, garlic, and cucumber into a smooth puree.
• 2 slowly drizzle in olive oil, pulsing in between additions; add vinegar, pulse once more.
• 3 season with salt and pepper to taste; for an authentic flavour, you might want to add a little more minced garlic rather than a large amount of salt and pepper.
• 4 transfer to bowl; cover and chill for at least two hours to allow all the flavours to blend.
• 5 heat a thin layer of olive oil over medium heat and fry the bread cubes for a few minutes until golden and crisp; drain on kitchen towels.
• 6 ladle the gazpacho into bowls.
• 7 drizzle with olive oil and grind fresh black pepper on top.
• 8 set all of the toppings into separate small bowls so that guests may serve themselves however much they like.
• 9 enjoy!