Blender Gazpacho with Bread and Summer Tomatoes

By Sprig Originals ✓ · cooked up in Sprig

A no-cook chilled tomato soup built on the ripest tomatoes you can find, with a slice of stale bread blended in for a silky, spoon-coating body. Everything goes in the blender, then the bowl goes in the fridge — the long chill is what turns raw vegetables into a soup that tastes deeply seasoned cold. Finish with a slick of good olive oil and a rain of crisp croutons.

Ingredients

• 3 lb very ripe tomatoes, cored and roughly chopped
• 3 oz stale crusty white bread, crusts removed, torn (about 2 thick slices)
• 1 medium English cucumber, peeled and chopped
• 1 medium red bell pepper, seeded and chopped
• 1 small shallot, roughly chopped
• 1 clove garlic
• 3 tbsp sherry vinegar, plus more to taste
• 1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
• 2 tsp kosher salt, plus more to taste
• 1/2 tsp sugar (optional, if tomatoes need it)
• 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper or a pinch of piment d'Espelette
• 1/4 cup ice water, if needed to loosen

• 2 oz crusty bread, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
• 2 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
• 1/4 cup finely diced cucumber
• 1/4 cup finely diced red bell pepper
• 2 tbsp snipped chives or torn basil
• flaky sea salt

Instructions

1. Put the torn stale bread (3 oz) in a bowl, add 1/2 cup cold water, and let it soak 10 minutes until fully soft. Squeeze gently and discard any excess water — you want the bread damp, not dripping.
2. Add the chopped tomatoes, cucumber, bell pepper, shallot, garlic, soaked bread, sherry vinegar, 2 teaspoons kosher salt, and cayenne to a blender. Work in two batches if your blender is under 64 oz.
3. Blend on low to break everything down, then raise to high and run a full 2 minutes. The soup should go from chunky to smooth and visibly paler as air works in.
4. With the blender running on medium, pour the 1/2 cup olive oil through the lid opening in a slow, steady stream over about 30 seconds. The gazpacho will thicken slightly and turn creamy orange-pink.
5. Taste. It should be bracingly bright. Add the optional 1/2 teaspoon sugar only if the tomatoes taste flat, and thin with ice water a tablespoon at a time if it's thicker than heavy cream.
6. For a silkier texture, pass the soup through a fine-mesh sieve into a large bowl or container, pushing with a ladle and discarding the skins and seeds left behind. This step is optional but makes a noticeably more elegant soup.
7. Cover and refrigerate at least 4 hours, ideally overnight. This is not optional — cold mutes salt and acid, and the flavors need time to knit.
8. Make the croutons while the soup chills: heat 2 tablespoons olive oil in a skillet over medium heat, add the bread cubes, and toast 5 to 7 minutes, tossing often, until golden and crisp on all sides. Salt lightly and cool on a plate.
9. Just before serving, taste the cold soup again and correct it: it will almost always want another 1/2 to 1 teaspoon of salt and a splash more sherry vinegar now that it's chilled.
10. Pour into chilled bowls or glasses. Top with the diced cucumber and pepper, croutons, chives or basil, a generous drizzle of olive oil, and flaky salt. Serve immediately, while it's still very cold.

Chef's tips

Nutrition (per serving, estimated)

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