Gazpacho.....Very Hot Weather Today!

Gazpacho is really recommended for hot days. The ice cubes served in it and the slightly tangy taste of uncooked tomato will cool you down. It is also another way to get rid of your very ripe tomatoes, and any stale bread you have.  One way to make Gazpacho is as follows:




You will need:
Serves 4
-  250 gr of any dry bread you have or fresh bread soaked in water for an hour depending how dry it is.
-  1 kg of ripe red tomatoes well washed. Cut off the stem and the vein which goes with it by cutting round the stem 2 cm deep and cut roughly.
-  1 green bell pepper well washed. Cut off the stem and wash all the seeds from inside the bell pepper and roughly cut.
-  2 cloves of garlic roughly cut.
-  50 gr of cucumber peeled roughly cut.
-  100 ml extra virgin olive oil.
-  1 tsp. salt.
-  ½ tsp. sugar.
-  2 ice cubes per person.
-  Croutons.
For the extras:
-  Count 1 small onion finely minced per person.
-  Count 1 little cucumber per person cubed.
-  Count 1-2 Tbsp. of your roasted bell peppers per person.
-  Count 1 hard boiled egg per person finely cut.
Method:
-  Squeeze all water out of the soaked bread and set aside.
-  Combine tomatoes, cucumber, bell pepper, the squeezed bread, salt, sugar, garlic, and the olive oil in a blender and blend the heck out of it until you get a nice velvety texture. Don't worry if the soup does not turn out red-red. It may have a "Thousand Island Salad Dressing" color to it, never mind,  it will taste out of this world anyway.
-  Serve in a bowl or soup cup with some croutons on top and two ice cubes per person.

For the extras:

-  In a four quarter separated platter, put each of diced onion, roasted bell pepper strips, hard boiled egg bits, and cubed cucumber in each separate quarter.
-  Serve on the side with the soup.
Very refreshing and filling too!!
Enjoy!
Stelio