Sunday Soup #115: Watermelon Gazpacho

Yep, you read that right... WATERMELON! Just when you thought everyone's favorite summer fruit couldn't get any better, I found a recipe to turn it into a soup!!

It has been kind of hot here the last few weeks and, despite my long-held (scientifically supported!) belief that eating warm soup helps your body better regulate its temperature, sometimes a cold soup just sounds more refreshing. Enter gazpacho... This cold soup made of raw, blended vegetables originated in Spain and is, today, eaten widely in Spain, Portugal, and other locales, particularly during hot summers. Many gazpachos are tomato-based, but recipes for modern variations sometimes include more exotic and exciting ingredients.

I made a VERY delicious Green Gazpacho (https://soupersleuth.blogspot.com/2018/07/sunday-soup-64-green-gazpacho.html) as part of this project a couple summers ago, and I encourage you to try that one, too. But, was this one equally tasty?

This recipe came from: https://www.simplyrecipes.com/recipes/watermelon_gazpacho/

*Pic 1 - https://www.simplyrecipes.com/recipes/watermelon_gazpacho/

Variations from the Recipe as Written: The jalapeños I used were fresh from friend Lisa's garden, but they weren't very spicy, so I used one jalapeño and one serrano. That's it!

General Thoughts: As you would expect from a soup that is 90% fruit and vegetables, there was some light prep on this one... Almost everything needed to be chopped; however, because it all went into the blender, a rough chop was fine. Only a few ingredients (i.e., onion, bell pepper, cucumber, and hot pepper) needed a smaller dice because they were also added to the bowl after the majority of the soup was puréed, and the garnishes (i.e., avocado and cilantro) needed to be prepped, but it was all pretty low intensity overall.  I cheated a little (ssshhhhh!) and got the fresh watermelon pre-cut at my local market to save even more time.

*Pics 2 & 3 - Pictures from when I made it

I won't beat around the bush here, this one was great! The texture was interesting and not-at-all unpleasant. It was not as smooth as the Green Gazpacho, which benefitted from the creaminess provided by the avocado, but this soup was blended to have a little more of a "pulpy juice" mouthfeel. The chunks of vegetables were delightfully crisp and provided a nice texture variation that I enjoyed.

I expected this one to be quite sweet, which made me a little wary. It was on the sweeter side (as a result of the tomatoes and - duh! - watermelon), but the red wine vinegar cut the sweetness very nicely (the recipe starts with 1/4-cup of vinegar but says you can add up to 1/2-cup if needed - I used 1/2-cup total). It was also not as watermelon-forward as I expected; I could definitely taste it, which was important, but it was not overwhelming. All of the ingredients blended together (pun definitely intended!) to produce a cool, refreshing, flavorful, delicious soup that would be perfect as a summer soup course, a BBQ side dish, or a light-fare selection at a garden party. We ate it as a side with a build-your-own-nachos bar, and it was a terrific compliment.

Potential Improvements? I really can't think of any improvements... Practically perfect for me as-is!

Polling the Fam: I won't be coy here... It was terrific, and it will definitely be a summertime go-to for me in the future! Lisa was the only other person to try this one, but she also thought it was great. We both ate it leftover for lunch the day after, as well, and it was equally good!

Verdict: Loved it! (5 stars)