Gazpacho

Tomato season has started, and it's come in with a serious bang. Looking at a large pile of tomatoes can be intimidating since not many recipes have tomatoes as the main ingredient besides soup. We have had a horrible heat wave, so a cold tomato soup sounded perfect. I'd never eaten gazpacho, let alone made it, so I was a little nervous. I figured no matter what it would taste like fresh salsa.

Gazpacho
1 1/2 c. chopped, seeded peeled cucumber
1 c. chopped onion
1 c. chopped yellow pepper
6 tbsp. red wine vinegar
1 tbsp. olive oil
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp pepper
2 lbs. chopped, seeded tomatoes (about 6 large)
1 garlic clove

Mix all of the above ingredients in a large bowl. Add the mixture to the food processor one-third at a time. Process until pureed. Cover and chill.

And that's it...it really is that easy! The original recipe called for white wine vinegar but red wine vinegar worked well. This soup was definitely better the next day, after the flavors had mixed. The onion and vinegar add a kick to the refreshing soup. You do not have to chop any ingredients well since it will be pureed. You can leave the tomatoes skin on or off, up to you. I would not recommend using small cherry tomatoes because they have a lot more skin than regular tomatoes. Make sure you have toasted bread (we used a baguette) to soak up all the yummy tomato juice! This recipe is everything you want in a summer dish, easy and quick to make, refreshing and cool!

Maizie's Tabouli

I have to start by saying how sorry I am for how bad I've been about blogging what Joe and I have been cooking. Trust me, we've definitely still been cooking! I blame it on vacation and graduate school! On a happy note, tomato season is finally upon us! For 2 weeks now we've been getting big, juicy local tomatoes from our CSA. Plus we've been having trouble keeping up with the number of yummy cherry tomatoes coming out of our garden.

Whenever I see a big bunch of ripe tomatoes the first thing I want to make is my friend Maizie's Tabouli. I first had this recipe my senior year of college when Maizie brought it to a BBQ at our advisor's house. A few years later (more than I'd like to admit) Maizie finally wrote down the recipe for me and I've been addicted ever since. Tabouli is a traditional Middle Eastern salad made with bulgur wheat, tomatoes, and herbs. You probably have seen a box at the grocery store saying it's a tabouli kit and you simply add the tomatoes. Please do not buy them! It just does not taste the same! This recipe is so much better and just as easy to make.

Maizie's Tabouli
3/4 c. bulgur wheat
3 lg. ripe tomatoes, chopped finely
a lot of fresh herbs (mint, parsley, and chives according to Maizie, we added basil this time)
1 tsp. salt
2 tbsp. olive oil
2 tbsp. lemon juice (go heavy)
cumin, cinnamon (go light)

Soak the bulgur wheat for 2-3 hours. If you're in a time crunch just make the water warmer for less time. Then just add it all together. Go very heavy on the herbs, trust me it's hard to mess up! Add just a dash of cumin and cinnamon at the end. Let the flavors marinate together for awhile in the fridge before you serve it.

As mentioned before traditionally mint, parsley, and chives are a great combination. This time we only had basil and chives so we used that. It turned out just as good as usual. This is the perfect summertime salad. Refreshing, light, and easy to make! Cheers!

P.S. Thanks Maiz :)