Week 61:
RECIPES OF THE WEEK FROM OUR CULINARY INSTRUCTOR MICHELLE ITZKOWITZ!
This watermelon soup is a cold, refreshing, and sweet-savory summer soup that is prepared in gazpacho style. It means blended raw without straining and serve chilled. This soup will surely cool you down on a hot summer day!
Adapted from My Pure Plants
Chilled Watermelon Soup, Gazpacho Style
Ingredients
- 3 cup Watermelon (diced)
- 1/2 Bell pepper (medium)
- 1/2 Cucumber (medium)
- 2 Roma tomatoes (medium)
- 2 tsp Tomato paste optional
- 6-8 Fresh basil leaves
- 6-8 Fresh mint leaves
- 1 Tbsp Chives (chopped)
- 1/2 tsp Ginger optional
- Salt and Pepper to taste
- Veggie topping (diced to at most 1x1 inch pieces)
- 1 cup Watermelon (diced)
- 4 stripes Bell pepper (medium)
- 1/4 cup Cucumber (diced)
- 1 Roma tomato (diced)
- Other topping ideas
- Freshly chopped basil
- Freshly chopped mint
- Extra-virgin olive oil
- Sherry vinegar or red wine vinegar
- Hot chili powder or flakes
- Jalapeño pepper
Instructions
- Peel, remove seeds and dice watermelon.
- Wash and dice cucumber, tomato and bell pepper. Chop chives. Set aside.
- Add watermelon first to a blender, then add all other diced vegetables, finally add herbs, spices and chives.
- Blend well until you get a smooth texture.
- Chill soup in fridge for at least 3-4 hours in order to get a rich, matured taste. Adjust seasoning if necessary.
Notes
You need fresh ingredients! - It is a raw vegetable soup, so freshness is crucial. Fresh or dried herbs? – FRESH!!!! What if I don’t have fresh tomatoes? - If you don’t have any fresh tomatoes at all, you can use canned chopped tomatoes.
Serve after chilled! - The flavors will mature if you chill the soup in the fridge for at least 3-4 hours. The soup will change color a bit (it gets darker) as the veggies and the fruit starts to break down and come together. I recommend to eat it within 2 days though. It is raw food, so it can get spoiled fast.
How to make a stunning red soup: So what happens if you mix red and green? Yes, it will be brown. That’s right! Here are some of our tips to make the soup as crimson as possible.
- Use end of season almost over-ripe watermelon. You know that sickeningly sweet and vibrant red one that gets slushy around the seeds.
- Core the tomatoes, aka discard the seeds and the white part in the middle.
- Peel the cucumber and discard dark green outer peel.
- Use red bell pepper.
- Substitute scallion whites for chives.
- Have you heard about shiso or purple perilla? It is also known as purple mint.