French-Inspired Gazpacho with Brioche Croutons
- Prep Time: 35 minutes + 2 hours chilling time
- Cook Time: 2 minutes
- Total Time: 2 hours 37 minutes
- Yield: 6-8 1x
Ingredients
Scale
For the gazpacho
- 2 pounds heirloom tomatoes, cored and cut into large chunks
- 1 large shallot, sliced
- 1 garlic clove, sliced
- 1 small jalapeño pepper, seeded and chopped
- 1 handful of fresh basil, chopped (about 1/2 cup)
- 1 tablespoon sherry vinegar
- 1 1/2 – 2 teaspoons flaky sea salt
- 1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil
For the brioche croutons
- 1 brioche roll or bun, cubed
- 2 teaspoons herbes de Provence
- 2 tablespoons salted French butter
For the garnish
- 1 small piece red pepper, diced small
- 1 mini cucumber, diced small
- Fresh thyme leaves
- Drizzle of extra-virgin oilve oil
Instructions
- In the bowl of a food processor, add the chopped tomatoes, shallot, garlic, and jalapeño and blend until smooth. Add the basil, salt, and vinegar, and blend together.
- Then, with the motor running, add the olive oil and blend until emulsified.
- Pour into a fine-mesh sieve over a large bowl to strain out the solids.
- You can help this along by using the back of a wooden spoon. Discard the solids.
- Chill for at least two hours.
- When ready to serve, chill the glasses, and make the croutons by melting the butter in a nonstick pan on the stovetop, and adding the cubed bread, herbes de Provence, and flaky sea salt. Toss until toasted.
- Pour the soup into a large measuring cup and fill the glasses.
- Top with the garnish of chopped red pepper, chopped cucumber, brioche breadcrumbs, and fresh thyme leaves.
Notes
When garnishing the gazpacho in the cups, start with the brioche croutons, then top with the finely diced red pepper, cucumber, and thyme leaves; this way, they don’t sink into the soup and get lost.