The first time I ever had gazpacho, I was 20 years old, freshly landed in Spain after a long-haul flight from the US, and absolutely starving. I didn’t know the first thing about Spanish food at that point, but what I do remember is being completely thrilled to sit down to multiple bowls of fresh, homemade gazpacho, which I devoured with an almost entire loaf of bread.
Gazpacho is often called a chilled soup, and I’ll be honest: that label has always felt a little misleading to me. Calling something as refreshing as gazpacho a soup doesn’t quite do it justice. I digress.
A harmonious blend of tomatoes, olive oil, cucumber, and onion makes it’s one of the most simple yet truly exceptional summer dishes you’ll ever have.
Just over a week ago, while scouting locations for my brand new Milan and Lake Como tour, I had lunch at the Grand Hotel Villa Serbelloni overlooking the lake, and found myself face to face with a gorgeous gazpacho all over again. It was smooth and refined, garnished with small diced vegetables for contrast, and absolutely delicious.
If I’m being completely honest, I’m partial to a smooth gazpacho, just like the one I first had in Spain: simple, completely smooth, and unapologetically tomato-forward.
It’s not very often that I can nail a recipe on the first try, but this was one of those recipes for me. My neighbor from our apartment brought me an entire crate of gorgeous produce from Naples, including several juicy, large summer tomatoes. My mind was going wild thinking of all the possibilities, but I knew that when we were hitting another mid-90 degree day earlier last week, cold Gazpacho would be in the cards.
I kept the recipe super simple and swapped onions for shallots, which is what I had on hand, but I ended up liking the flavor even more.
If you have a summer garden or access to a farmers market with great heirloom, beefsteak, or Roma tomatoes, this is your moment. The quality of your tomatoes is everything, and when you start with great tomatoes, this dish basically makes itself.
Serves: 4 | Prep Time: 5 minutes | Cook Time: 5 minutes | Chill Time: 2 hours (optional) | Total Time: 10 minutes active time & up to 2 hours with chill time
6-7 medium tomatoes, such as roma, beefsteak, or heirloom*
2 shallots, outer layer removed, ends trimmed
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