José Pizarro's Strawberry Gazpacho
"Gazpacho is a lovely super-fresh vegetable soup. It’s very popular in Andalusia, southern Spain, where they have really high temperatures during summer and this rich but cold dish is perfect!"
Ingredients
- 700 g ripe strawberries plus a few reserved for garnishing
- 300 g vine-ripened tomatoes chopped
- 1 roasted red pepper sliced
- 1 small shallot finely chopped
- 1 small clove of garlic crushed
- 1 tbsp sherry vinegar
- 75 ml extra-virgin olive oil plus extra for frying and serving
- Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
- 2 slices of sourdough bread diced
- Basil leaves and edible flowers to garnish
Instructions
- In a large bowl, combine the strawberries, tomatoes, roasted red pepper, shallot, garlic and sherry vinegar. Toss all the ingredients together then leave to infuse overnight.
- The next day, add the extra-virgin olive oil to the bowl and whizz everything together with a hand blender or in a food processor until smooth, adding a splash of water if it’s too thick. Season the gazpacho to taste with salt and pepper.
- Pour a little olive oil into a frying pan over a medium heat and fry the sourdough croutons for 4 to 5 minutes, until golden on all sides. Drain on kitchen paper and sprinkle with sea salt.
- Divide the gazpacho between individual soup bowls and garnish with the extra strawberries, basil leaves, edible flowers and sourdough croutons.
- Finish with a drizzle of extra-virgin olive oil and some sea salt.
- Serve with a cold glass of sherry, preferably amontillado or palo cortado.