Gazpacho Splendid

Photo: Emily Heston

Ingredients

Soup base (to be marinated):

3 large heirloom tomatoes

3 stalks celery

4 smalls to medium cucumbers

1 small fennel bulb

1 jalapeno pepper, seeded and chopped

5 cloves garlic, chopped

cup chopped basil

Juice of 2 lemons

4 teaspoons salt

Soup broth:

1 cup strained tomatoes (store bought)

5 cups bottled tomato juice

2 tablespoons pick-a-pepper sauce

1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce

1/2 cup olive oil

Juice and zest from a lemon

medium Fresh ground pepper (about 3 turns of the peppermill, grind)

Garnish:

1 avocado, cubed

5 green onions, thinly sliced

10 basil leaves, chiffonnade

2 tablespoons olive oil

Preparation

Soup base: Roughly chop the tomatoes, celery, cucumbers, fennel and jalapeno and put them in a large bowl. Add to the vegetables the chopped garlic, basil, lemon juice and salt. Allow to marinate for a few hours or overnight in the refrigerator.

Soup broth: combine ingredients in a pitcher.

When ready to serve, use a hand held blender to chop up soup base until it is just slightly chunky. Add broth to base and stir. Stir avocado cubes into soup. Top soup with green onion slices and basil. Drizzle olive around on the surface of the soup.