yellow gazpacho (for a change)

i'm obsessed with yellow tomatoes... i soak up their color, put my nose to their skins and inhale deeply. the earthy and fruity smell is intoxicating. a summer without yellow tomatoes wouldn't be summer at all. okay, and maybe add a couple of ice creams, too, and i'm happy.

anyway, i've recently turned them into passata di pomodori gialli and this gazpacho here. we were in provence, so another cold soup was in place. so refreshing and good. ps: its big brothers, the red version, can be found here and here. happy weekend!

yellow gazpacho

ingredients:

1 kg yellow tomatoes

1 cucumber, peeled (usually, i leave the peel on but for a nicely colored gazpacho it's better to remove it)

1 yellow pepper

1 tiny piece yellow chili (medium heat)

1 white onion

2 garlic cloves

1 dl good vegetable broth (cooked then cooled)

5 tbsp. olive oil

1 lemon, zest

1 tsp. fleur de sel

1 tsp. harissa

1 tsp. acacia honey

directions:

bring water to a boil in a large saucepan. make a cross shaped cut into each tomato and put them in the boiling water for a minute. cool in ice cold water, then remove the skins. dice. peel the cucumber, half and remove the seeds with a spoon, then dice, too. wash and half the pepper, remove the seeds, then dice. half the yellow pepper, deseed, chop finely. peel the onion and garlic, chope finely, too. put about half of the vegs in a food processor. add half of the oil and broth for liquid. pulse for a minute or so, to desired consistency (i like my gazpacho smooth but not too smooth). proceed with the rest of the vegs. combine both parts. now season with harissa, honey, salt and lemon zest. you might need to add more liquid, so add a bit more broth if you wish. chill thoroughly for a couple of hours (at least 4). note that when the gazpacho is fully chilled and the flavors have mingled, you might find you need to add more spice or salt. i always think it's better to season again than to have it overly salted to begin with.

divide the gazpacho between glasses or bowls. you might want to add a few ice cubes (man, i like that a lot). drizzle with a little olive oil and decorate with anything fresh that inspires you, like leaves, flowers or berries, even (i used a slice of the yellow-green-sprinkled tomatoes, a parsley leaf and a not yet ripe strawberry). serve and enjoy quickly before the ice cubes melt.