Easy Spicy Gazpacho Recipe

Easy Spicy Gazpacho

Loaded with tomatoes, cucumbers, red onion, garlic, and bell pepper, the unassuming soup originated in the southern Spanish region of Andalusia. This version from Dallas interior designer Cathy Kincaid takes a Texas detour with the use of spicy tomato juice. To omit the heat, use a mild tomato juice.

• 1 ¹/₂ pounds vine-ripened tomatoes
• 1 ¹/₂ cups spicy tomato juice, preferably Dei Fratelli Tasty Tom
• 1 cucumber, peeled, seeded, and chopped
• ¹/₂ cup chopped red bell pepper
• ¹/₂ cup chopped yellow bell pepper
• ¹/₂ cup chopped red onion
• 1 small Anaheim pepper, seeded and minced
• 2 small cloves garlic, minced
• ¹/₄ cup extra-virgin olive oil
• Freshly squeezed juice of 1 lime
• 2 teaspoons sherry vinegar
• 2 ¹/₂ teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
• ¹/₂ teaspoon ground cumin
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt
• ¹/₄ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• ¹/₄ cup tightly packed basil leaves, for garnish
• Chopped cherry tomatoes, for garnish

1 | Fill a 6-quart pot halfway with water. Set the pot over high heat and bring to a boil. Fill a large bowl with ice water.

2 | Make an X with a paring knife on the bottom of each tomato. Drop the tomatoes into the boiling water for 15 seconds, then remove with a slotted spoon and transfer to the bowl of ice water.

3 | Allow the tomatoes to cool enough to handle, approximately 1 minute. Remove the tomatoes from the ice bath and pat dry. Peel, core, seed, and chop the tomatoes.

4 | Place the tomatoes and juice in a large mixing bowl. Add the cucumber, bell peppers, red onion, Anaheim pepper, garlic, olive oil, lime juice, sherry vinegar, Worcestershire, cumin, salt, and pepper and stir to combine.

5 | Transfer 1 ¹/₂ cups of the mixture to a blender and puree on high speed until broken down but not completely smooth, 15 to 20 seconds. Return the pureed mixture to the bowl and stir to combine.

6 | Cover the soup and refrigerate for at least 2 hours and up to 12 hours. To serve, ladle the soup into bowls and garnish with basil leaves and cherry tomatoes.

---

Excerpted from Entertaining at Home: Inspirations from Celebrated Hosts by Ronda Carmen with principal photography by Matthew Mead and Michael Hunter (Rizzoli New York 2019). Read Flower‘s book review.