Tomato Watermelon Gazpacho from "Plenty More"

It's tomato season. The fabulous time of the year when tomatoes actually are enjoyable to eat raw. Their pithy, tasteless winter counterparts pale in comparison to the luscious, sweet and juicy summertime superstars. 

I was at my parents' house in South Carolina last weekend and my mom had a bowl of cherry tomatoes, picked fresh from her garden, just sitting out on the counter, like a healthy version of a candy jar. I popped one of those in my mouth and experienced the most fabulously sweet burst of tomato that I think I have ever tasted in my life. They were literally like candy. That's what you get when you eat fresh fruits and vegetables, in season, from reputable sources (like my parents' garden). 

One of my favorite uses of fresh, in season tomatoes is in gazpacho. This is a dish that is purely reserved for summertime when tomatoes are in season as it relies on tomatoes for the base of its flavor. It's basically a blended tomato soup, kicked up a notch with additional vegetables and flavors - so you better believe it is important to use good tomatoes if you want a good result!

I typically gravitate toward Alton Brown's Gazpacho recipe (found here) but in flipping through Plenty More, I found a recipe that used watermelon - another one of my summertime favorites. I've been really excited to make this recipe and I am incredible pleased with the result. It's perfect.

One of the keys to any gazpacho recipe (tomato-based, of course) is peeling the tomatoes. Don't even try to get out your vegetable peeler and expect the skin to come off without making a terrible mess. A quick boil is the best way to easily separate the skin from the tomato. If you mark an X on both ends of the tomato and place in in boiling water for 30-90 seconds, then shock it in ice water, you should be able to slip the skin right off.

Another fabulous addition to this soup was some homemade croutons (gluten free in my case). A little pan frying for browning before popping them in the oven to bake resulted in a lovely little comfort to top the healthy, fresh soup. The most unique aspect of the croutons is the addition of red wine vinegar to the traditional oil/salt coating. This adds a nice depth of flavor.

Perhaps I should have featured the truly exciting part of this dish - the watermelon. I think I was too busy snacking on it though to take a picture. I'm pretty sure I could eat a full one. In this dish, the watermelon added a subtle sweetness and complexity that was a perfect complement to the tomato. Here's to summer in a bowl.

Tomato and Watermelon Gazpacho
p. 90 in Plenty More
serves six

Ingredients

• 4 1/2 lb/2 kg tomatoes (about 20), blanched, peeled, and coarsely chopped (10 1/2 cups/1.9 kg)
• 5 cloves garlic, coarsely chopped
• 6 celery sticks, white parts and leaves finely chopped (about 3 cups/450 g)
• 1 small onion, finely chopped (1 cup/140 g)
• 2 2/3 cup/400 g seeded and coarsely chopped watermelon flesh
• 3 1/2 oz/100 g crustless white bread (about 4 slices), broken into small chunks
• 2/3 cups/150 ml passata (tomato puree) or tomato juice
• 1/2 cup/15 g basil leaves
• 2 tbsp red wine vinegar
• scant 1 cup/200 ml olive oil, plus extra to finish
• salt and black pepper
• coarse sea salt, to serve

Croutons

• 5 oz/150 g crustless white bread (about 5 slices), broken into 3/4 to 1 1/4-inch/2 to 3-cm chunks
• 3 tbsp olive oil
• 1 1/2 tbsp red wine vinegar
• salt

Directions

1. First make the croutons. Preheat the oven to 400 F/200 C. Place the bread in a bowl along with the oil, vinegar, and 1/2 teaspoon salt. Place a grill pan over high heat, add the croutons, and cook for 2 minutes, turning until all sides are slightly charred and starting to crisp. Transfer the croutons to a baking sheet and place in the oven for about 12 minutes, until golden brown and crispy. Set aside to cool.
2. Place the tomatoes, garlic, celery, onion, watermelon, bread, passata, and two-thirds of the basil in a blender (or large bowl, if using a handheld blender) along with 3/4 teaspoon salt and a good grind of black pepper. Blend until smooth and then, with the blender still going, add the vinegar and olive oil. Refrigerate until needed.
3. To serve, pour the soup into individual bowls and top with the croutons. Scatter the remaining basil leaves over each portion, along with a final drizzle of oil. Finish with a little coarse salt and serve at once.