Watermelon Gazpacho

I made watermelon gazpacho from this book. My coworker brought in a watermelon the other day andsaid she didn't know what to do with it, and I think there are actually a lot of things that can be done with watermelon - salsas, cocktails, sauces, sorbets. It is not just for eating out on a picnic table with the ants. As I was wandering around the grocery store looking for the ingredients I was also thinking of a firecracker popsicle inspired cocktail I had at New World Bistro last Fourth of July weekend, and I realized I was just trying to recreate that meal of a year ago subconsciously, and that seemed sort of funny to me. Anyways so you have a watermelon and you chop it up and purée it. I used my immersion blender we got as a wedding present, and I can't believe how fast and effectively it works.

It helps to start out with a little bit and add 1/4 cup cider vinegar and 1/4 cup water, and then once that is puréed add more watermelon in batches until it is all liquified.

Add 2 cucumbers chopped and peeled, and 1 chopped red onion and purée those too.

Mix in some herbs (I just used mint, but the recipe also wanted basil and cilantro). The recipe also wanted red bell peppers but I used some grape tomatoes chopped up instead. I also used radicchio instead of jicama because they didn't have jicama where we were. Then, add some garlic, 1 teaspoon cumin, some peppers for a kick (I put in two habaneros because I am crazy), some salt, pepper and 3 tablespoons lime juice.

Chill it and serve it with more herb garnish and a lime wheel. I thought this was delicious. It made 6 lunch portions. It says something that I am still thinking about it after having it at New World Bistro a year ago. It is great because it is refreshing, healthy, and has a bit of a kick to it. I wonder about adding a dab of crème fraîche or something to balance out the heat of the habaneros. I love cold soups in the summer. I love chilled cucumber soup. I also love cold dinners in the summer like salads and shrimp cocktail with some greens. So this I think is a great thing I can be making all summer long.