Spanish Gazpacho

Spanish Gazpacho

source

6-8 vine ripened tomatoes with thin skins chopped into 1/2 inch pieces
1 large eggplant or 3 Japanese eggplant chopped into 1/2 inch pieces
1/2 onion chopped fine
3 clove garlic minced
1 hot pepper chopped fine
2 tsp balsamic vinegar
1 tsp worcestershire sauce
1 tbs fresh thyme leaves, stripped from stems
2-3 tbs olive oil
one lime - juiced
1 tsp dried ground cumin, toasted
1 tsp Spanish paprika
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper
fresh basil or other hergs for garnish (reserve for each serving)

Saute onion in olive oil till translucent, add minced garlic and cumin, toast for about a minute till fragrant, add tomatoes. Many folks peel and seed their tomatoes but I don't. Add chopped eggplant. The eggplant gives lots of volume to soup without changing the flavor. Add about a cup of water (depending upon the juiciness of the tomatoes. You can substitute tomato juice if you like. Add remaining ingredients. Cook till tomatoes and eggplant are almost mush, about an hour. Let cool and blend in blender till smooth. some folks leave their gazpacho chunky and add cucumbers, zucchini, or red bell peppers. Refrigerate for four hours or overnight. Serve with a chiffonade of basil or other herbs or vegetables as garnish. You could serve with a slice of toasted bread or.herb crackers.

I neglected to take a photo of my soup so I borrowed the image above from the web. Tomorrow I'll be at the farmers market from 7 am to 1 pm. Thanks for reading and for all your comments.