As summer wears on and I try to figure out how to beat theheat in my hundred year-old house with no AC, my motivation slows, mostly whatI want to do is a lot of nothing; however,my hyper-active self struggles with sloth.To satisfy my desire to laze around and my extroverted personality Ithrow a party. I love last minutegatherings with friends and neighbors where everyone brings something cold todrink and the host provides nice summer snacks like chilled gazpacho soup, freshfruit, yakitori chicken kabobs and a salad made from garden greens. Easy light entertainment is the best. I love passing a summer evening sitting inthe shade with a cold cocktail, good friends and kids running amuck through myhouse.
Summer Gazpacho I learned from my many trips to Spain tovisit my family. (time: 15 minutes, plus chill time)
1lb ripe tomatoes
1/2 sweet red pepper, peeled
1/2 cucumber, seeds removed and peeled
1/3 of a small onion or one shallot
1 small clove of garlic
3 tablespoons of olive oil
1 tablespoon of sherry vinegar
Salt and pepper to taste
In a blender or food processor blend freshtomatoes, red pepper, cucumber, onion and clove of garlic. While pureeing drizzle olive oil into theblender then add vinegar. (Sherryvinegar can be strong so go light and put extra on the table for those who likemore to add later) Because this soup isn't cooked go easy on the onion andgarlic, in their raw state they are strong.Pour puree through a strainer to make smooth, and chill. Serve cold with diced cucumber, red pepper, onionfor garnish and extra vinegar and oil to add to taste. Crusty bread, a bowl of this soup and a glassof cold white wine and summer is ready.
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