Cherry Tomato Gazpacho- Raw, Fast, Easy and Delicious

If you are like me, than summers aren't exactly easy.  You need to cram family visits, outdoor activity, work, and recovering from the heat into practically everyday.  So you need something, fast, something cooling, something that'll keep in your fridge and something that you can make with allllll those cherry tomatoes we keep getting in our Karma Farm bags :)

This gazpacho can be ready in under 10 minutes, with a food processor, and only requires the most minimal of pre-chopping.  If you are chopping by hand, I recommend a VERY sharp, very large chef knife to speed through the fine dicing...and you will get a chunkier soup, which is totally fine.

This recipe will produce 2 hearty portions, or 4 lunch time portions, depending on when you need the most humidity recovery intervention.


What you'll use from your bag
2 orange peppers
2 spring onions
~ half your cherry tomatoes
red onion (technically from last week, but you may use store-bought)
1-2 cucumbers (this week's or last's)


What else you'll need
2 spring of fresh parsley
1/4 cup cilantro
1 Tbs fresh dill
1/2 lemon
2 radishes
1 Tbs balsamic vinegar
2 tsp agave nectar
salt and pepper to taste
Optional: 1 tsp crushed red pepper


First, pre-chop the onion, cucumber and peppers
You can leave the tomatoes, whole, but it's best if no other ingredient has pieces larger than your tomatoes, to ensure a more consistent final texture.

Add all your ingredients to the food processor, for me that just about filled my 14 cup.  Feel free to divide your ingredients in half, or add the tomatoes last, as it will compress very fast as it becomes

chopped.

I usually pulse in counts of 5 until the texture is still a little chunky, but looks completely mixed, with no large chunks of any one vegetable or herb.  This usually takes about 1 minute, and I scrape down the processor bowl with a spatula once or twice and add salt and pepper to taste.

Once it is a nice texture, you may chill it and enjoy it for up to 5 days, or eat it straight out of the processor bowl (which is usually what I end up doing!)

In the picture, my bowl is adorned with raw sprouted watermelon seeds, and if you haven't tried them,  I encourage you too!  The black shell casing is removed, and the sprouted seeds have a wonderful nutty flavor.  You can find pre-sprouted seeds for sale at places like Mom's.

ENJOY!

Summer Borscht & the works

Did you know that borscht is Russian for salad bar?  It's not, really, but in my family it may as well have meant that, because its a glorious opportunity to load up on all your favorites, or stick to a flavorful soup if you prefer it less chunky.  Some will take all the fixins and puree it, sort of like a beet-based Gazpacho, but I prefer to see all the elements, and chew them, kind of like a hybrid summer-winter borscht.

Unlike a traditional borscht, I've replaced the cucumbers and radishes with Celtuce, an interesting sharp and nutty flavored green.  By soaking the chopped stem in a little wine and salt, the natural bitterness transforms into a cooling almost peanut flavor that compliments the savory soup incredibly and adds a complex dimension.

This particular method is heavily inspired by the recipe left behind by the poet Allen Ginsberg, maybe it will inspire you to Howl :)



Serves 4-6, served with Vegan Sour cream



What you'll use from your bag:

Beets, ~10 small/medium, peeled and slivered, with the greens from half of them chopped
Red Potatoes, diced and roasted, ~ 1/2 of the yield, the smallest ones are best
1 garlic scape
Celtuce, leaves for the bowls, and ~ half the stem either chopped or sliced

Optional: diced Radish



What else you'll use:
Chives or Spring Onions, 1 or 2 chopped
1 Tbs Sugar
2 Tbs lemon juice
1/4 cup white wine (wine vinegar works in a pinch) and 2 Tbs for the celtuce
4 cups of veggie broth to boil, and 2 more to cool
Fresh dill
1 tsp Salt, and 1/2 tsp for the celtuce
1 tsp Black pepper
1 tsp Caraway powder
1 Cup Vegan sour cream, like tofutti, or make your own, with more to serve

Optional: halved Cherry tomatoes


First, you'll roast your potatoes
Heat your oven to 400 degrees, and go about prepping your veggies. Dice the potatoes, and toss them in a tablespoon of oil with a few pinches of salt and spread them evenly on a baking sheet, and roast for 25 minutes, stirring once at the 15 minute mark.

While they roast, peel and sliver your beets, and chop the greens.

Now is also a good time to chop up your celtuce, and put it in a small bowl with 2 Tbs wine and 1/2 tsp of salt to marinate.  If you are very worried about the bitterness, try a sweeter wine, or sprinkle some sugar in and toss the mixture.


Now, boil your beets
In a large soup pot, place your beets, greens, 4 cups of broth, a pinch of salt, black pepper, and
caraway powder in, and bring to a slow boil, and let simmer for 10 minutes.  A total of 30  minutes should cover it. If the beets aren't tender give them another 5-10 minutes.  The broth should be bright red, and the aroma very savory.



Once tender, strain the solids from the liquid, and set both aside to cool.
Once the liquids cool a bit, add some fresh dill, 1 Tbs sugar,  2 Tbs lemon juice, 1 cup of vegan sour cream, 1/4 cup wine, and 2 cups of cool broth, and whisk to combine.  Add salt and pepper to taste.

Take the mixture and refrigerate for 4+ hours
Serve with more vegan sour cream, dill, celtuce leaves, chopped garlic scapes, potatoes, beets and greens, and green onions.  Load it up with the works!