Gazpacho

This soup should taste of sunshine, so you’ll need the ripest and freshest vegetables you can find to do it justice. If you want to gild the lily further, some good black olives, pitted and diced, and a few oregano leaves are lovely when added to the vegetable garnish.

SERVES 4

PREPARATION TIME: 20 MINUTES

TIME

700g (1lb9oz) vine-ripened tomatoes

2 red capsicums (peppers), halved and seeded

1 large cucumber

1 garlic clove, crushed

½ loaf ciabatta, torn

4 tablespoons sherry vinegar

100ml (3½floz) extra virgin olive oil

2 teaspoons caster (superfine) sugar

Tabasco sauce, to serve (optional)

ice cubes and basil leaves, to serve

Set aside 2 tomatoes, half a red capsicum and a quarter of the cucumber.

Roughly chop the remaining tomatoes, capsicums and cucumber and place in a blender with the garlic and bread. Blend to a rough purée, then transfer to a bowl and stir in the vinegar and 200ml (7floz) water. Season with salt and pepper. Cover and chill for at least 2 hours or overnight. The bread will swell up and the flavours will mellow.

Before serving, nick the bases of the reserved tomatoes, place in a heatproof bowl and cover with boiling water. Drain the tomatoes and peel the skin away. Chop into fine dice, along with the reserved red capsicum and cucumber.

Stir the olive oil into the gazpacho and taste again. Add the sugar, Tabasco sauce (if using) or a little more vinegar, salt or pepper, and even a little extra chilled water to adjust the consistency. The soup should have quite a kick to it so make sure it’s nice and punchy.

Divide the soup among chilled bowls and serve with the ice cubes, a scattering of the diced vegetables and basil leaves.