Adiós Summer

Some of my favorite memories from childhood are coming home from soccer practice to a refreshing bowl of gazpacho for dinner. Because it was so easy to make and tomatoes are one of my favorites, it quickly became a summer staple in our household. 

Although I haven’t played a game of soccer or touched a spoonful of gazpacho in years, I still think back fondly on the taste and memories I have associated with it. We had an abundance of tomatoes from the one heirloom tomato plant we had planted in a pot in our deck and as summer was coming to an end, I decided it would be perfect to try out the recipe and re-live a small part of my childhood. To go along with the theme, I decided to make a Spanish-themed dinner. Along with gazpacho, I made bean salad with red peppers and Spanish rice. 

GAZPACHO

Origin

Gazpacho originated in Andalusia, an autonomous community located on the southern coast of Spain. The soup was originally made from a simple combination of a few vegetables, nuts, water, bread, oil and garlic. This was the typical meal of Andalusian workers, who labored in extremely hot conditions and enjoyed gazpacho for nourishment as well as to cool down. 

From its original recipe of pounded vegetables, water, and bread, gazpacho has evolved over time. Today the soup is known for usually having a thick tomato base, but also includes ingredients such as cucumber, onion, pepper, and garlic. Additionally, some variations now have a sweeter twist, such as the incorporation of watermelon and cantaloupe. 

The dish also appears mentioned in Roman and Greek literature. Largely because of this, the name is often attributed to Latin, and more specifically, the Latin word, “caspa”, which means little pieces, likely referring to the breaking up of the ingredients. 

Gazpacho continues to be enjoyed in Spain and Portugal. During hot summer months, it is served consistently in bars and restaurants. At times, the soup is not even characterized as a soup at all, but rather a refreshing drink.

Process

The process of making gazpacho starts out by chopping up the vegetables that make its base. I cut up onion, red and green bell pepper, peeled cucumbers, and my favorite, heirloom tomato.

We rarely get to enjoy heirloom tomatoes in my house, but it is one of my favorites because it is so beautiful to look at. Some recipes had instructed me to discard the outside of the tomato, but with such a beautiful fruit I couldn’t bear to and decided instead to cut up the whole thing.

Then I combined the vegetables in a blender, at high speed, scraping the sides of the blender down to get a smoothly blended mixture. I ended up having to do it in two batches because the vegetables started to overflow our small blender. Once the mixture was free of chunks and resembled a bright red-pink color, I removed it from the blender and added the rest of the ingredients, vinegar, salt, and olive oil. 

Although the recipe I was following recommended that I strain this mixture so only the juice would remain, the gazpacho of my childhood always included every part of the vegetable, so I decided to skip over this step.

I then refrigerated the gazpacho while I made two other dishes, doing so to chill the soup and draw out its flavor.

Taste

The taste of the gazpacho was just how I had remembered. If anything, mine wasn’t nearly as cold, because I only refrigerated it for a few hours. My version was also creamier and lighter in color than my mom’s used to be. I enjoyed it nonetheless and was instantly transported back to hot summer days, sipping gazpacho with each spoonful.

SPANISH RICE

Origin

Spanish rice has been a favorite of mine for years. Although I’ve only had it in restaurants, I make sure to place an order whenever I get the chance. The rice is golden-orange in color and is just as beautiful as it is delicious.

Although Spanish rice seems like it would originate in Spain, it actually originates in Mexico in the Veracruz region. This variation of the dish isn’t even served in Spain. However, the name is likely due to Spaniards bringing rice to the region. Once Spain invaded Mexico, the Spaniards began to import many of the food items they enjoyed at home, such as pigs and cattle for meat, along with rice. In this way, the dish became a fusion of indigenous Mexican and Spanish cuisines, with the flavorful sauce that the dish is known for incorporating ingredients native to the Americas, such as jalapeños and tomatoes. It was typically served as a side, enjoyed with beans or fish. 

Process

The process for making Spanish rice came in two parts. I started with the easiest step, making the rice. For this, I simply put long-grain rice in the rice cooker, turned it on, and let it be until it was fully cooked. While it was cooking, I heated up oil in a large frying pan. Once the rice was cooked, I added it to the pan and cooked until golden brown. 

Then I started the sauce. To my surprise, the sauce was made inside the pan, on top of the rice, so they never separated. This allows the rice to really soak in the flavor of the sauce as it cooked with it. 

The recipe to add a bouillon cube. However, we didn’t have any in the house, so I substituted it with chicken broth. To do this, I replaced the bouillon cube and four cups of water the recipe called for with four cups of chicken broth instead. On top of the broth, I added tomato sauce, minced garlic, cumin, garlic powder, pepper, and salt. I stirred and covered the pan. 

Then I let it simmer for about 30-40 minutes. Right before serving, I fluffed up the rice and garnished it with a few leaves of cilantro.

Taste

The rice was delicious. It was nice to have a warm contrast to the cold gazpacho, and the sauce made the flavor just perfect. I loved being able to recreate another childhood favorite of mine, not only so I could taste it, but also to prove my growth in my cooking journey.

BEAN SALAD WITH RED PEPPERS

Origin

When we were younger, my mom used to be a vegetarian. She would try to incorporate protein substitutes for meat, such as tofu, jackfruit, and beans into each meal so we could all enjoy her family dinners. As for the latter, beans were one of my favorites. Black and kidney beans were always a staple in our home, and to pay homage to a typical meal from my youth, I know I needed to incorporate beans into my meal.

Cannellini beans are known for their origins in Italy, however, they were developed in Argentina. Italy is very close to Spain and the country likely adopted the beans from Italy. Like Cannellini beans, red peppers also don’t originate in Spain. Rather, they originate in South America and likely spread to Spain through returning colonizers. 

Process

The process of making the salad was possibly the easiest because it only included one step: mixing the ingredients together. Preparing the ingredients themselves was the brunt of the work, and more specifically the red peppers. 

Combining the other ingredients wasn’t at all hard. I drained and rinsed cannellini beans and capers, sliced spring and red onions, and added a dressing of white wine vinegar, olive oil, salt, and ground black pepper. 

For the red peppers, I had to use an interesting method to skin them. My mom had a brilliant process where she simply broiled the bell peppers in the oven until the skin got charred, then placed them in an airtight container. This caused the bell pepper to sweat, making it easy to peel the skin off.

As the bell pepper was still very hot from its time in the oven, I had to peel the skin off with metal tongs. Still, it was relatively easy to pull off and after only a few minutes, the bell pepper was completely naked.

Once they were cooled and completely bare, I cut up the bell pepper into slices. 

I then added this to the serving bowl, mixing it along with the rest of the ingredients and, completing the salad.

Taste

Unlike the other dishes I had made, this was my first time trying Spanish bean and red pepper salad. It was beautiful to look at, the contrast of the white and red made it very visually appealing. Each bite was a rollercoaster of tastes, from the creamy beans to the sour vinegar and capers, to the sharp onions, each second had something new to offer. I loved the salad, it was light, like the gazpacho, but was grounded by the Spanish rice. 

Conclusion

The meal was not only delicious but also beautiful. Coincidentally, all the dishes followed with a red and orange theme. This only made it an even more perfect meal for September. Not only was it a cool dinner to say goodbye to summer, but it was also a perfect transition into fall with its warm colors that mirrored the falling leaves that are so characteristic of autumn.