Best of Summer Tomato Soup (Raw)

Best of Summer Tomato Soup is composed of just a few simple ingredients that are at their peak of flavor in the summer. How can you resist the bounty of tomatoes, sweet peppers, cucumbers, garlic, and red onion when they are in season, sun-kissed and ripe off the vine. When produce is this fresh, all you have to do is blend them together, enhance the mixture with the magic of some good quality vinegars and oils, add a little spice, et voila! A summery fresh soup (or refreshing beverage) is served.

These days, the best places to buy fresh, in season fruits and vegetables are at a local farmer's market or at a local family farm. Supermarket produce, sadly, has been mostly disappointing, at least to me, recently. When I tried to research the reasons, I learned that most produce sold in supermarkets is bred not for flavor, but for heartiness to resist insects and be shipped long distances. It may be difficult to know where the tomatoes you see in the grocery store were grown and how far they were shipped. And, why, in the middle of tomato season in your area, the ones in the grocery store aren't very good. I wrote more about the sad state of supermarket produce here.

Jump to:

• Ingredients
• Instructions
• Variations
• Equipment
• Storage
• Related
• Consider This

Ingredients

• Tomatoes: In general, any variety of fresh tomatoes will work just fine. In this soup, the flavors of the ingredients is what you're going to taste, so start with the best tomatoes you can find . For the very best tasting tomatoes, grow your own or buy fresh at a local family farm or at a farmers market.
• Cucumber: Any variety of cucumber is fine, but I like the Persian cucumbers or English cucumbers for this recipe.
• Bell pepper: Green, red, yellow or orange peppers are fine for this recipe, but they do all taste different. I used a red bell pepper here, but use the one you like best.
• Red onion: I love the sweetness that balances the bite of red onions, but you could substitute shallots if you prefer, since they are a little milder.
• Garlic: There's not a lot of garlic in this recipe, just enough, I think.
• Jalapeno pepper (optional): I don't love the spiciness of peppers in every dish, but it works here. It's optional but it adds a brightness in this soup.
• Sherry vinegar: Sherry vinegar is more rounded than red wine vinegar, and more complex than apple cider vinegar. It's a little sweet and a little sour, but not bitter like other vinegars can be. Give it a try.
• Olive oil or avocado oil: Many traditional gazpacho recipes use a lot of olive oil, but I find that too much oil dulls the flavors of the vegetables, which I think should be the stars of the dish, so this recipe cuts the oil down a bit.
• Ground cumin: Cumin adds a deep earthy note to the soup that makes it feel warm and satisfying (even though it's a cold soup).
• Salt and pepper: A must for almost every recipe to balance flavors.

Instructions

• Peel, core and seed your tomatoes. This will concentrate the tomato flavor and streamline the process.
• When you're seeding the tomatoes, place the seeds and pulp into a fine mesh strainer set over a bowl to catch the juice. Press as much of the juice through as possible.
• In a large bowl, add the tomatoes, tomato juice, cucumber, jalapeno, pepper, onion, garlic, olive or avocado oil, sherry vinegar, cumin, salt and pepper and stir to combine.
• Transfer about a cup and a half of the mixture to a blender and puree until smooth.
• Return the pureed mixture to the bowl and stir to combine.
• Cover and chill for 2 hours or overnight.
• Serve! Top with a sprinkle of chopped cucumbers, peppers, and/or red onions or simply as it is. It's already a soup and salad in one dish!

Variations

Here are a few ideas for customizing the soup to make it exactly the way you like it:

• Puree all of the soup: Puree the whole mixture instead of just some of it for a smoother, creamier soup.
• Drink the pureed version: If you puree the whole mixture, you can serve it as a refreshing beverage on a hot afternoon.
• Experiment with different vinegars - The sherry vinegar used in the recipe has a specific taste, which I hope you'll enjoy, but you could try an aged balsamic to make the soup a little sweeter, or apple cider vinegar to add a bit of a vinegar kick.

Equipment

1. Chef's knife. There's definitely a lot of chopping of vegetables in this recipe, so you'll want to use a good sharp chef's knife. This knife, from Shun, is a good quality Japanese style knife. Alternatively, this one, from Wustoff is a popular German version. There are several differences between Japanese and German chef knnives, but generally, German knives are known for their durability and resilience, while Japanese knives are known for their precision and sleekness.
2. Cutting board. Since you'll be chopping, you'll want to protect your knives by using a good cutting board. There are so many options. On a budget? Buy a good quality plastic one like this one from Farberware . An aspiring chef? Consider investing in a quality wooden board like this one from the John Boos brand.
3. High speed blender. To puree part or all of the ingredients as noted in the recipe, you'll need a blender. I use this one from Vitamix and love it. It does go on sale from time to time, so look at various housewares vendors online, especially in the lead up to holidays. You could also use a use a smaller personal blender and blend in batches.

Storage

This is a fresh soup and needs to be eaten within a day or two. Store in the refrigerator in an airtight container if you have any left over after making and enjoying it.

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