Marj's Gazpacho

GAZPACHO

So to bring something back as a food memory: tomatoes at their warm-fleshed sweetest, eaten in your hand with salt or from our travels in South Africa, we loved the cold gazpacho served at Babylonstoren served with avocado icecream ... my culinary partner in crime will be writing about his experiences there in June's Thoughts from Thyme ... so the one brought home in my memory taste-bank, and to share with you now, is my take a wonderful chilled bowlful served under the trees at one of the vinyards and kept cool with tomato water ice cubes.

Serves 6
Ingredients

• 1kg really ripe tomatoes chopped roughly

• 1 slice stale soughdough bread

• 2 red peppers

• 500g ripe tomatoes - skinned, de-seeded & chopped

• 1 cucumber, peeled, de-seeded & chopped

• 3 spring onions, sliced

• 125mls olive oil

• 50mls good quality South African Cabernet or sherry vinegar

• 1 tsp runny honey or caster sugar

• 1 small clove garlic, minced

• Salt & pepper

Method

1. Firstly, place the 1kg chopped tomatoes mixed with 1 tsp salt into a muslin and hang over a bowl to drip overnight

2. Next day, pour your tomato water into one ice cube tray, reserving the rest

3. Rub the peppers with a little oil, roast for 20 mins until blistered, remove from the oven and place in a plastic bag.

4. When cool, skin & discard along with the seeds

5. Soak the stale bread in water for 20-30mins, then squeeze out excess liquid

6. Place the peppers, 500g skinned tomatoes, the bread, cucumber & spring onions in a blender and pulse to chop - but not puree

7. Turn into a bowl and whisk in the olive oil, vinegar, honey, garlic then enough tomato water to loosen to a soupy consistency

8. Season to taste & chill really well

9. Serve in chilled bowls with tomato water icecubes