By Susan Levy
Recently my husband and I celebrated our 25th wedding anniversary by hosting a three-generation dinner party for our family and friends, our adult children, and of course, the grandchildren of all our guests. Since most of the grandchildren were under five-years-old, we had separate, easy-to-eat finger foods for them.
We chose a Spanish theme and started the party with tapas—with a Mediterranean twist! Instead of serving traditional Gazpacho, we reinvented the ingredients as a salad and served it to our guests in stubby martini glasses. Such fun! That got me thinking about one of my all-time favorite no cook dishes and multiple ways to enjoy it—spring, summer, fall, and winter.
In addition to the refreshing taste, Gazpacho provides an easy way to fulfill and enjoy our veggies, and also enjoy the preparation process. Gazpacho: Easy to prepare, delicious to eat.
Summer Gazpacho Salad
Whether you start with frozen leftovers, or from scratch, it’s simple to create a cold gazpacho salad. All you have to do is pour a little of the gazpacho in the bottom of a clear glass that can substitute as a small salad bowl (solely for presentation).
Dice the same veggies used in the Gazpacho, mix them together, and place them on top. Use the same garnishes as for Traditional Gazpacho.
You can even add whatever else you have in your refrigerator like diced hearts of celery, red onion or thinly sliced radishes.
Winter Gazpacho
[Insert picture: Cold Weather Gazpacho]
If you froze any Gazpacho from the summer, remove them from the freezer and defrost. Or simply whirl up a batch using the Traditional Gazpacho recipe above and heat the soup on the stove (do not boil).
Meanwhile, sauté a piece of firm white fish like snapper or cod. Ladle the soup into bowls and gently place the fish on top so it looks like it’s floating, as pictured here. Add garnishes.
When your Gazpacho is ready, bring on the fiesta. And don’t be afraid to unleash your creativity when reinventing your own variation of this heart-healthy treat. Remember, if I can do it, you can too . . .
Susan Levy is publisher of wellfedheart.com and author of the e-book Mediterranean Diet Recipes in 5 steps or less. This heart-healthy grandma inspires audiences to replace diet with lifestyle–forever.
