Gazpacho Recipe

Prepare and blanch tomatoes (optional)

Score a small X on the bottom of each tomato. Bring a pot of water to a boil and prepare an ice bath. Blanch tomatoes 20–30 seconds until skins loosen, then plunge into ice bath. Peel off skins and core the tomatoes. This step yields a smoother gazpacho but can be skipped for a more rustic texture.

Roughly chop peeled tomatoes and place in a blender or food processor.

Peel and roughly chop the cucumber (reserve 1/2 cup diced for garnish) and add to blender.

Core, seed and roughly chop the red bell pepper; add to blender.

Peel and halve the red onion; add half to blender (reserve the other half thinly sliced or minced for additional garnish if desired).

Add the garlic cloves, 60 ml extra-virgin olive oil, 30 ml sherry vinegar, 250 ml cold water, 2 tsp fine sea salt and 1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper to the blender.

Blend on high until very smooth, 1–2 minutes. Stop, taste and adjust seasoning: add more salt, vinegar or lemon juice (up to the optional 5 ml) if it needs brightness. If the soup is too thick, add up to 50–100 ml more cold water and blend again to reach desired consistency.

Pass the blended mixture through a fine-mesh sieve into a bowl, pressing with a spatula to extract as much liquid as possible for an extra-silky texture. Alternatively, skip straining for a chunkier gazpacho.

Cover and chill in the refrigerator at least 2 hours, ideally 4 hours or overnight, to let flavors meld. Gazpacho is served cold.

Preheat the oven to 200°C (400°F) and line a baking sheet with parchment.

Slice the baguette on the diagonal into 12–14 thin slices (about 1 cm / 1/2 inch thick). Brush each slice lightly with a mixture of 15 ml olive oil and optional 10 ml dry vermouth, or simply olive oil.

Arrange slices on the baking sheet and bake 6–8 minutes until crisp and just golden. Remove from oven.

While still warm, rub each crostini lightly with the halved reserved red onion (optional) or brush with the 15 g melted butter for extra richness. Top each with a small piece or shave of Manchego so it warms and softens on the toast.

Set crostini aside to cool slightly — they should be crisp but still hold the cheese.

Stir the chilled gazpacho gently. Taste and do a final seasoning adjustment (salt, pepper, splash of vinegar or the optional lemon juice). If you strained the soup, whisk in the finishing 15 ml extra-virgin olive oil for sheen and mouthfeel.

Ladle gazpacho into chilled bowls or glasses.

Scatter the reserved diced cucumber (1/2 cup) and diced tomato (1/2 cup) over each bowl, sprinkle the 2 tbsp chopped chives or basil, and grind a little extra black pepper.

Drizzle a little finishing olive oil (15 ml divided) over the soup and serve each bowl with 2 crostini topped with Manchego on the side or floated gently on top.

Serve immediately, keeping any extra crostini separate so they remain crisp. Gazpacho keeps covered in the refrigerator 2–3 days; crostini are best the day they are made.