If you’ve been following along this summer, you know I’m intriqued with the tomato-strawberry flavor pairing. Earlier, I experimented with a Fresh Strawberry-Tomato Dessert Sauce to accompany Heavenly Parmesan Sour Cream Pound Cake. It was a surprise hit. Hopefully, there will be time to explore at least a couple more strawberry-tomato dishes before summer turns to fall.  

While pondering what to cook next and flagging from the 90+ degree heat wave that hit Seattle this week, the inevitable happened. I opened the oh-so-wonderfully-cold frig and saw, at eye level, a large bowl of strawberries, alongside an equally large bowl of Sungold cherry tomatoes, both of which were intended for salads.

The next thing I knew, strawberries, tomatoes, chiles, cilantro, and garlic were heading to the blender. In they went. Then a few glugs of chicken stock, a long pour of extra virgin olive oil, a splash of vinegar and a large pinch of salt. Whirrrrrr…

Then a taste. OMG! I drank a large glass on the spot. For dinner later that night, the remainder, now well chilled, went into elegant, stemmed glasses and was garnished with poached prawns, whole strawberries, and Frizzled Pancetta. If there had been an avocado, I might have garnished the soup instead with Prawn, Avocado & Lime Escabeche. Well, next time.

A loaf of crackly bread and a couple of flavorful cheeses made a simple and lovely meal, perfect for a hot summer evening. For dessert, there was Blueberry, Lime & Rose Petal Cheesecake. We each had two slices.

P. S. If this heat keeps up, you may also want to try Spicy Cucumber Gazpacho and Roasted Red Bell Pepper Gazpacho.

Kicky Tomato Strawberry Gazpacho

A sweet, tangy, spicy variation on the more traditional tomato gazpacho, this cold soup makes an excellent first course for hot summer evenings. Although not mandatory, the poached prawns and Frizzled Pancetta garnishes give the soup a little more substance and added visual appeal. Or glam it up and garnish with Prawn, Avocado & Lime Escabeche.

1 pound stemmed, chopped sweet baby tomatoes
1 pound stemmed, sliced strawberries
½ small sweet onion, peeled, and rough chopped
1-2 Serrano chili peppers, halved lengthwise, cored, seeded, and deribbed (use disposable gloves!)
2 small sprigs cilantro
2 cloves peeled garlic

¾ cup chicken or vegetable stock
¼ cup olive oil
2-4 tablespoons excellent quality red wine vinegar (start with the minimum and adjust)
1½ teaspoons fine sea salt

Garnish
4-6 poached prawns, optional
4-6 whole strawberries with stems, optional
4-6 sprigs cilantro, optional
Frizzled Pancetta, optional (below)

-or-

Prawn, Avocado & Lime Escabeche

1. To the jar of a blender, add tomatoes, strawberries, onion, Serrano chiles, and garlic. Cover and liquefy.
2. Add the stock, olive oil, vinegar, and salt. Cover and liquefy.
3. Taste for a perfect balance between sweetness, acidity, salt, and depth of flavor. Adjust as necessary.
4. Add a little more stock if necessary to achieve a good soup texture (not too thick, not too thin).
5. Remove soup to a covered container and chill for at least 4 hours.
6. To serve, ladle soup into each of 4-6 clear glass cups or bowls, and if desired, garnish each with a poached prawn, whole strawberry, sprig of cilantro, and a small amount of Frizzled Pancetta. Or, gild the lily and garnish with Prawn, Avocado & Lime Escabeche.

Makes about 5-6 cups; serves 4-6.

Frizzled Pancetta

I add this tasty garnish frequently to soups, whether hot or cold. It adds a savory, salty flavor note that is quite appealing.

vegetable spray
2-3 very thin slices pancetta, cut into ¼-inch wide strips

1. Coat a medium saute pan with vegetable spray and set over medium-high heat.
2. When hot, add the strips of pancetta and saute briskly, turning frequently, until they are crisp and curling, about 2 minutes.
3. Remove to paper towels to drain.

Makes a small handful.

I talked about my LOVE for gazpacho earlier this summer in the Spicy Cucumber Gazpacho post. In a moment of wild gazpacho abandon, I promised to share at least six of my favorite gazpacho recipes with you this summer. Whatever was I thinking? It’s August already and this is only number two. Mea culpa! Mea culpa!

Nevertheless, this particular gazpacho is so wonderful, I hope you will forgive me for not delivering the others. Roasted red bell peppers are one of the most gorgeous flavors in the world. They are both sweet and savory, silky and toothsome, subtle and bold. I buy them by the half dozen every week and dream up ways to use them.

This is one of the simplest ways I know. It’s incredibly refreshing and surprisingly satisfying on a hot summer evening. A loaf of crackly bread and a couple of excellent cheeses will make a simple and memorable meal. Throw in a lovely dessert (Grilled Peaches with Basil Crème Fraîche?), and you’re a rock star.

Roasted Red Bell Pepper Gazpacho

A sweet, sassy, smoky variation on the more traditional tomato gazpacho, this cold, spicy soup makes an excellent first course for warm summer evenings. The combination of smoked hot paprika and orange really takes the flavors here into the magic zone.

6 red bell peppers, roasted, cored, seeded, deribbed and chopped (3 cups chopped, roasted, peeled red bell peppers) (1½ pounds roasted)

5 ounces super-sweet grape tomatoes

1/4 red onion, peeled, and rough chopped

1-2 serrano chili peppers, halved lengthwise, cored, seeded, and deribbed (use disposable gloves!)

2 cloves peeled garlic

¾ cup chicken or vegetable stock

¼ fresh orange juice

¼ cup olive oil

2 tablespoons finely grated orange zest

2 tablespoons excellent quality Sherry vinegar

2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

2 teaspoons smoked hot paprika

1 teaspoon salt

¼ teaspoon freshly ground white pepper

Garnish

1 cup, seeded, juiced, diced yellow tomato (1 tomato)

1/2 cup finely slivered green onions, green part only (2 green onions)

2 tablespoons chopped cilantro (or parsley if preferred)

2 teaspoons coarsely grated lemon peel

1. To the jar of a blender, add the red bell peppers, tomatoes, red onion, serrano chiles, and garlic. Cover and liquefy.
2. Add the stock, orange juice, olive oil, orange zest, Sherry vinegar, lemon juice, paprika, salt, and pepper. Cover and liquefy.
3. Taste for a perfect balance between sweetness, acidity, salt, and depth of flavor. Adjust as necessary.
4. Add a little more stock if necessary to achieve a good soup texture (not too thick, not too thin).
5. Remove soup to a covered container and chill for at least 4 hours.
6. To serve, ladle soup into each of 4-6 clear glass cups or bowls, and garnish each with a small amount of yellow tomato, green onion, cilantro, and grated lemon peel.

Serves 4-6.

I LOVE gazpacho! Am I alone in this? I’m always amazed that so few restaurants offer it, especially when the temperature soars unmercifully in the summer. If LunaCafe were a brick-and-mortar, versus virtual, café, I would serve a different gazpacho every week all summer long. How fun would that be?

It would be easy to do too. I have at least six favorite gazpacho recipes I could share with you right now, for instance. And I plan to make this a gazpacho summer, so will have even more by September.

You’ve probably guessed that one of the reasons I love gazpacho is because it’s NOT fattening. Eat, drink all you want. It’s also sensationally satisfying with BIG flavor. And even though I would never add a quart of tequila (or was it vodka?) to my gazpacho, that’s what Carmen Maura did in the movie, Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown, and it worked for her.

So here you go. Whip this up for your Memorial Day festivities, and let me know if you want me to keep the gazpacho recipes coming. Roasted Red Bell Pepper and Fennel Gazpacho anyone?

Spicy Cucumber Gazpacho

Here is a spicy, chilled soup with vibrant color and over-the-top flavor. It just doesn’t get any fresher tasting than this. I love serving this soup in small glasses as a prelude to a casual summer meal or simply as an afternoon pick-me-up. It really sparks the appetite.

2 English cucumbers, peeled and chopped (4 cups chopped)

1 green bell pepper, cored, seeded, deribbed, and chopped

3 green onions, trimmed and cut into 1-inch lengths

2 jalapeno chiles, stemmed, halved lengthwise, seeded and deribbed (use disposable gloves)

small handful Italian parsley, large stems removed

small handful spearmint or lemon verbena leaves

2 large cloves garlic, peeled and minced or pressed

½ cup chicken stock, or water, plus additional

¼ cup cold pressed olive oil

2 tablespoons natural-process red wine vinegar

2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

several drops of Tabasco Green Pepper Sauce, to taste

1 teaspoon fine sea salt

Garnish

¼ cup diced English cucumber (with peel)

¼ cup diced green bell pepper

coarsely grated zest of 1 lemon

6 small tips of fresh spearmint or lemon verbena

1. Put the cucumber, bell pepper, green onions, jalapeno chiles, parsley, spearmint or lemon verbena, and garlic into a blender and liquefy.
2. Add the stock, olive oil, vinegar, lemon juice, Tabasco, and salt. Pulse to combine.
3. Taste and adjust the balance of salt and lemon juice if needed.
4. Adjust the thickness of the soup by adding a little more chicken stock if needed.
5. Chill for at least two hours.
6. Just before serving, pour the soup into individual cups, and then sprinkle each with a bit of diced cucumber, red bell pepper, and lemon zest. Top each serving with a tiny sprig of spearmint or lemon verbena.

Makes 2 quarts; serves 6.