Somehow I have made it through the summer without making gazpacho. What? How could that possibly have happened? Fortunately, I came across this gazpacho recipe from Nancy at Urban Kitchen Apothecary which gave me the motivation to get this taken care of before tomato season ends. Beefy tomatoes are best for this kind of recipe and while we will have plenty of our smaller Juliets and cherry tomatoes available until at least the first week in October, the big ones don't last much past the middle of September for us. I typically leave our bigger tomatoes as a slicing tomato for sandwiches, this recipe was worthy of an exception.

Gazpacho with Rye Bread Croutons

Many Adaptations from the Breakfast Gazpacho recipe from Urban Kitchen Apothecary

For the croutons:

Add 1 slice of rye bread (I used a light rye) cut into 1/2" squares (removing crust is entirely up to you) to a small frying pan on medium low heat. Add 1 T of olive oil and stir to coat bread. Cook until toasted, this will take about 5 minutes. Transfer from pan to paper towel lined plate.

For Gazpacho:

2 Large Tomatoes, about 1 1/2 pounds total, cored & quartered
1 medium cucumber, roughly chopped, should be around one cup
1 slice of light rye bread, torn into 2" pieces
1/4 c of chopped white onion, the sweeter the better
1 T of sliced shallot
2 T fresh basil leaves
2 T white balsamic vinegar
3 T Olive Oil
1 T Cholula hot sauce
Salt to taste
Place all ingredients in a food processor or blender and blend until smooth. Add salt to taste. Serve immediately or refrigerate for an hour. Garnish with croutons.