Spring tomato gazpacho

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Refreshingly chilled but with a subtle tartness and acidity, there's a reason why tomato gazpacho is such a classic spring and summer soup. Paul Welburn lets the high quality ingredients speak for themselves in his gazpacho recipe, infusing the soup with cucumber, red pepper and basil before blending and garnishing the dish with fresh peas, crunchy pine nuts and a mix of tomato textures from pickled and raw pieces on the side. With the soup and pickled tomato prepared the night before this stunningly presented dish works well as an easily assembled dinner party starter.

First published in 2016

Ingredients

Metric

Imperial

Gazpacho

Sweet pickled tomatoes

To serve

Equipment

  • Blowtorch
  • Blender

Method

1
Prepare the pickled tomatoes 24 hours before serving. Place the vinegar, sugar, thyme and water in a small pan and place over a high heat. Bring to the boil, then remove from the heat and allow to cool
  • 100ml of white wine vinegar
  • 50g of sugar
  • 1 sprig of thyme
  • 100ml of water
2
Use a blowtorch to scorch the skins of the cherry tomatoes. When blackened and charred, plunge the tomatoes into iced water to cool and peel off the skins
3
Place the peeled tomatoes in a bowl or container and pour over the cooled pickling liquor. Cover and leave to pickle for 24 hours
4
Also the day before, prepare the gazpacho. Place all the ingredients, except the tomato juice, in a large bowl and mix well. Cover and leave to infuse overnight
5
The next morning transfer the gazpacho to a blender and blitz together until thoroughly combined. Pass through a fine sieve to ensure it is completely smooth and add the tomato juice to adjust the consistency until it forms a pourable soup. Season to taste and chill in the fridge until required
6
To serve, pour the soup into deep serving dishes and swirl over a drizzle of olive oil. Drain the pickled tomatoes from the liquor and arrange 2 per dish along with the halves of fresh cherry tomato. Scatter over the fresh peas and toasted pine nuts and garnish with cress, pea shoots and edible flowers

Paul Welburn has years of Michelin-star cooking behind him, holding a star for five years at restaurant W1.

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