Cantaloupe Gazpacho
I have been slacking lately, I know. I guess I have been keeping myself busy watching Olympic games and went to watch 2 live games in London. I have to say that it has been an amazing experience and I have never been to any Olympic games before, so far in my life!
So, I haven’t really been cooking a lot. This is not great, I think. I need to get back to the routine of updating my blog more often.
A few days before the Olympic started, we had enjoyed wonderful warm weather. But now, it’s back to the typical British summer that looks cloudy and it rains from time to time. Anyway, I did make the most out of those warm days! I made cantaloupe gazpacho and I absolutely love it!
Gazpacho is a soup that is served cold that originates from south of Spain. It’s very popular as it’s refreshing and serving cold soup does make sense during the hot summer months in south of Spain!
One of my favourite summer fruits is cantaloupe. When choosing cantaloupe, I smell the stem end and around it. If there is no smell, then it means it’s not ripe. Ripe cantaloupe should smell sweet and fruity.
The best cantaloupe I have in my life so far is from France. It’s Charentais melon, the variety that is usually grown and sold in France. It’s super sweet! Like really sweet! I could get Charentais melon here but double the price of a cantaloupe. But, for this recipe, I personally think it is worth using Charentais melon for its natural sweetness.
If you can’t find Charentais melon, you can just use cantaloupe and add a bit of sugar to enhance the sweetness, if needed. I have also chosen to garnish my gazpacho with some chopped cucumber and cantaloupe. You can omit this if you want but I think it adds a nice texture and dimension to the dish. Bacon bits could also be another ingredient used for garnishing. This again, is another option and I think it will be great to add to add a bit of saltiness and crunchiness to the gazpacho.
Cantaloupe Gazpacho
Prep Time:
20 minutes
Cook Time:
30 minutes
Yield:
4 servings
Ingredients:
For the Cantaloupe Gazpacho:
1/2 garlic clove, roughly chopped
8 cherry tomatoes
1/3 cucumber, cut into cubes plus extra for garnishing
1 cantaloupe, cut into chunks
2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1 tsp lemon juice
salt and freshly ground black pepper
some bacon bits, for serving (optional)
Method:
1. Put the garlic, cherry tomatoes and cucumber in a food processor and blend until smooth. Pour into a bowl over muslin cloth, squeeze out the juice and discard the solid. Set aside.
2. Add the cantaloupe in the food processor, blend until smooth. Pour into a bowl, mix in olive oil, lemon juice and season with salt and pepper. Add the tomato and cucumber juice, stir to combine.
3. Put in the fridge to chill. To serve, divide equal portion into glass or small bowls, top with some chopped cucumber and cantaloupe and some bacon bits, if liked.
