Stayin' Cool: Cantaloupe-Tomato Gazpacho

A slightly unusual gazpacho, sweetened naturally with a ripe melon, but still a "vegetable" tomato gazpacho. Just fifteen minutes to the table! Let's beat this heat! (Says Alanna, who's so looking forward to today's forecast of 95F in a place without air conditioning! Yikes.)

Real Food, Fresh & Summery. Not just easy, Summer Easy. Budget Friendly. Weeknight Easy, Weekend Special. Great for Meal Prep. Weight Watchers Friendly. Not just vegan, Vegan Done Real. Naturally Gluten Free. Rave Reviews. What're you waiting for?!

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COMPLIMENTS!

• "... a favorite, because here we can buy cantaloupe cheaply by the bag ... I buy lots, make soup, and invite people over for a refreshing lunch." ~ Bobi from Mexico

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What Is Gazpacho, Anyway?

Here's what I would have written about gazpacho, something I've made and loved for years and years.

• It's Spanish and it's [pronounced guz-POTCH-o]. So far so good.
• Gazpacho is a cold tomato and vegetable soup, served chilled during the heat of summer.

But then I consulted my go-to cookbook for Spanish food, the tomato-stained pages of My Kitchen in Spain (affiliate link) by Janet Mendel. (The most wonderful Summer Vegetable Stew, a top recipe at A Veggie Venture, comes from the same cookbook.) The book is packed with information about Spanish food, there's even an entire chapter on gazpacho! Plus seven gazpacho recipes!

And oh man. Did My Kitchen in Spain teach me a thing or two.

Five Myths About Gazpacho: True or False

• Gazpacho is a soup. False! Gazpacho isn't cooked and some times it's not even soup but instead a thick cream.
• Gazpacho is served cold. False! Some versions are served hot, others at room temperature.
• Gazpacho always includes tomatoes. False! In fact, there are white gazpachos made with almonds, pine nuts and, hmmm, even eggs.
• Gazpacho starts off with puréed tomatoes and other vegetables. False! There are five ingredients that all gazpachos have in common, leftover bread, olive oil, salt, garlic and vinegar.
• Gazpacho is cosmopolitan fare best enjoyed at a restaurant. False! Gazpacho is peasant food that dates back to pre-Roman times when tomatoes were still unknown in Spain!


• SOURCE My Kitchen in Spain: 225 Authentic Regional Recipes (affiliate link) by Janet Mendel.

So What About This Recipe? Is it Gazpacho?

This may be an unconventional gazpacho but call me surprised about the happy marriage of cantaloupe and tomatoes in this easy, adaptable summer recipe.

Three reasons:

• COLOR A cantaloupe-only gazpacho looks pale and watery. Combined, cantaloupe and tomato reveal a color akin to our idea of the lovely melon-orange of summer-ripe cantaloupe.
• SWEET & SAVORY The cantaloupe adds a fruity sweetness even while the tomato keeps the gazpacho decidedly savory. Together, the two fruits – yes, a tomato is a fruit – yield something that’s both sweet and savory.
• CALORIES Tomatoes have many fewer calories than cantaloupe.

My One Traditional Gazpacho

Come late summer, when the tomatoes turn heavy with their own ripeness, Missouri turns steamy with August humidity and heat. That means it's gazpacho time! It's a small production but I'm always glad it makes a bunch, we go through it fast.

The recipe is the plain-sounding Tomato Gazpacho, something way more than the sum of its parts. If you're looking for something close to traditional Spanish gazpacho, that's the recipe.

But Tomatoes + Fruit Are Magical

• Fruity Gazpacho is this bright green mix of all things green: green grapes, green pepper, honeydew, a touch of jalapeno (just enough, not too much) and even avocado. This recipe also includes the story how cold gazpacho in cold November turned me into the seasonal eater I've been ever since. No hyperole, gazpacho changed my life!
• Tomato Cherry Gazpacho mixes tomatoes with sour cherries. Just imagine that color!
• And now, the lovely hued Cantaloupe-Tomato Gazpacho. Summer's never looked better.

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SUMMER EASY: CANTALOUPE-TOMATO GAZPACHO

Hands-on time: 15 minutes
Time to table: 15 minutes or 12 hours
Makes 8 cups

LIQUIDS
• 1 cup tomato juice
• 1/4 cup red wine vinegar
• 2 tablespoons good olive oil, optional (see TIPS)
• Zest & juice (about 2 tablespoons) of a lime
• 1 teaspoon sugar
• 2 tablespoons fresh parsley

FRUITS & VEGETABLES
• 1 very ripe cantaloupe, peeled, seeded and chopped
• 1 large very ripe tomato, chopped
• 1 large cucumber, peeled, seeded and chopped
• 2 ribs celery, chopped
• 1 orange bell pepper, chopped
• 1/2 a red onion, chopped
• To taste, Tabasco, optional

LIQUIDS In a blender, whiz the Liquids, transfer about half to a glass.

FRUIT & VEGETABLES Add half the Fruits & Vegetables and process to the desired texture, I prefer a rough chop not a fine purée. Then transfer it to a large bowl, then repeat the process with the remaining Liquids and Fruits & Vegetables.

SERVING TIPS Serve immediately for a “fruit-y” gazpacho or let rest for a few hours for a more “vegetable-y” gazpacho. Serve cold as a first course, a soup or even a light dessert. If you like, stir in a spoonful of cream, Greek yogurt or sour cream. Savor!

ALANNA’s TIPS Gazpacho is a "concept" recipe so feel to add and subtract or substitute ingredients as you see fit. To retain the pretty color, try to keep the ingredient colors in the warm red, orange and yellow colors. My Kitchen in Spain: 225 Authentic Regional Recipes by Janet Mendel is my go-to cookbook for authentic contemporary Spanish recipes. Her book has an entire chapter – a chapter! – on making gazpacho. It’s converted me to the idea that “gazpacho isn’t gazpacho” without a small measure of olive oil. I agree: olive oil adds a welcome mouthfeel and prevents the gazpacho from turning into a watery mess. Dip a slice of dry bread into gazpacho: heaven!

NUTRITION INFORMATION Per Cup: 90 Calories; 4g Tot Fat; 1g Sat Fat; 0mg Cholesterol; 22mg Sodium; 14g Carb; 2g Fiber; 12g Sugar; 2g Protein. WEIGHT WATCHERS Old Points 2 & PointsPlus 2 & SmartPoints 4 & Freestyle & myWW green & blue & purple Hmmm, Weight Watchers. This isn't a "smoothie" per se but it is roughly puréed. Should it qualify for my WW green, blue and purple points? I think it should but if you prefer, use 4 points pre cup.

Adapted from my 2006 recipe for the all-tomato Tomato Gazpacho on A Veggie Venture.

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Seasonal Eating During the Height of Summer Across the Years

Tomato Soup Vegetable Salad Baked Baby Back Ribs with Spicy Berry Sauce Two Quick Refrigerator Pickles Beef Tacos with Avocado, Cucumber, Mango Salsa Blueberry Salsa Easy-Easy Marinated Flank Steak Cold-Brewed Coffee (<< saves me every summer) Cantaloupe-Tomato Gazpacho Favorite Summer Soup Recipes Garden Pasta Salad with Mint Vinaigrette Master Recipe: Rustic Fruit Ice Cream Blueberry Cake How to Keep Green Onions Fresh for Weeks

This Week, Elsewhere

~ Zodiac Three-Bean Salad ~
from the Zodiac at Neiman Marcus
~ more St. Louis Restaurant Recipes ~
My Weekly Column in the St. Louis Post-Dispatch

~ Easy-Easy Roasted Zucchini ~
~ more Recent Recipes ~
A Veggie Venture

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More Cold Soup Recipes

(hover with a mouse for a description; otherwise click a photo to view the recipe)

~ more cold soup recipes ~
Kitchen Parade

Cool-as-a-Cucumber Avocado Soup
Raw Corn Chowder
Summer Borscht
~ more cold soup recipes ~
from A Veggie Venture

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Shop Your Pantry First

(helping home cooks save money on groceries)

~ cantaloupe recipes ~
~ tomato recipes ~
~ cucumber recipes ~
~ bell pepper recipes ~
~ lime recipes ~

~ All Recipes, By Ingredient ~
~ How to Save Money on Groceries ~

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Kitchen Parade is written by second-generation food columnist Alanna Kellogg and features fresh, seasonal dishes for every-day healthful eating and occasional indulgences. Quick Suppers are Kitchen Parade favorites and feature recipes easy on the budget, the clock, the waistline and the dishwasher. Do you have a favorite recipe that other Kitchen Parade readers might like? Just send me a quick e-mail via recipes@kitchen-parade.com. How to print a Kitchen Parade recipe. Never miss a recipe! If you like this recipe, sign up for a free e-mail subscription. sti If you like Kitchen Parade, you're sure to like my food blog about vegetable recipes, too, A Veggie Venture. If you make this recipe, I'd love to know your results! Just leave a comment below.

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