In the summertime, I use tomatoes alot.
It was already time to make this year's Hierloom Tomato Gazpacho. Mmm...I can taste the season. It's so easy to make. I like to toast a piece of whole grain sour dough bread first, before adding to the blender with other ingredients. Here's my super-simple recipe:
Rustic Heirloom Tomato Gazpacho
Ingredients
3 pounds ripe heirloom tomatoes
1/2 small to medium-size sweet onion
1/4 red bell pepper
Ingredients
3 pounds ripe heirloom tomatoes
1/2 small to medium-size sweet onion
1/4 red bell pepper
1 small clove garlic
1 slice whole-grain sour-dogh bread, toasted
juice from 1/4 lime
small splash of hot sauce
1/4 to 1/3 cup of extra virgin olive oil
salt and pepper to taste (or, I like using my shio-koji, instead of salt, for more depth in flavor)
Procedure
Cut the vegetables into large cubes.
Put all the ingredients in a blender and blend until very smooth.
Transfer the soup into Miso-shiru Nabe, and let it chill in the fridge for 2-4 hours.
1 slice whole-grain sour-dogh bread, toasted
juice from 1/4 lime
small splash of hot sauce
1/4 to 1/3 cup of extra virgin olive oil
salt and pepper to taste (or, I like using my shio-koji, instead of salt, for more depth in flavor)
Procedure
Cut the vegetables into large cubes.
Put all the ingredients in a blender and blend until very smooth.
Transfer the soup into Miso-shiru Nabe, and let it chill in the fridge for 2-4 hours.
The other night, I brought my gazpacho to a potluck dinner with friends. I drizzled some avocado-blood orange oil to each cup and it was such a nice combination.
For the next soup, you do need to use heat. But, it's made in less than 30 minutes (plus time to chill, if you want to serve it cold). It's Tomato & Zucchini Soup, seasoned with shio-koji (salt-koji). With the addition of just a small amount of shio-koji, it gives a extra layer of flavor to this simple soup. For the best result, I highly recommend you use soup & stew donabe, "Miso-shiru Nabe", to make it. It's simply because all the flavors come together so nicely in a short time, when it's cooked in this super-thick body donabe. Here's my recipe:
Tomato & Zucchini Soup
Ingredients (for 4 servings)
some olive oil
2 tomatoes, peeled and seeds removed, cut into large cubes
1 zucchini, cut into large cubes, plus 1/2 zucchini, cut into 1/4" cubes
1/4 onion
1 clove garlic, smashed
1 knob ginger, sliced
1 teaspoon herb de Provence
2.5 cup vegetable stock
2 teaspoon shio-koji
salt and pepper to taste
5-6 okra, cut into 1/4" thickness
chopped chives
Procedure
1. In Miso-shiru nabe, saute onion, garlic, and ginger in about 1 tablespoon of olive oil until onion is soft.
2. Add herb de provence and the large cubes of zucchini. Saute for a few minutes.
3. Add the tomatoes, and stir. Add the vegetable stock and shio-koji.
4. Cover and simmer for 20 minutes.
5. Meanwhile, saute the small cubes of zucchini and okra in about 1/2 tablespoon of live oil for a few minutes.
6. Add the sauteed vegetables to the soup and simmer for a few more minutes. Adjust the seasoning with salt and pepper.
7. Turn off the heat and cool it down. Refrigerate until the soup is chilled. Serve into individual bowls. Garnish with a drizzle of olive oil and chopped chives.
Happy healthy donabe life.
