Gazpacho

The formula for this cooling summer soup couldn’t be simpler: blended cucumbers, tomatoes, and sweet red peppers, plus garlic, herbs, and fresh citrus.

Featuring grilled then chilled garden vegetables and Arbequina Extra Virgin Olive Oil from Spain. This recipe created by Love and Lemons is in partnership with Olive Oils from Spain.

This zippy, herbaceous drinkable soup is like a trip to the farmers’ market in a glass.

A super-juicy watermelon is key; it should feel heavy for its size and sound hollow when tapped.

The addition of avocado makes this cold soup creamier than your average gazpacho, and the greens make it, well, greener, and with jalapeño included, too, it's got a serious kick that makes it anything but traditional. It probably goes without saying, but if you serve this to Spaniards, either don't call it gazpacho or be prepared for some arguments at the table.

Ryan Lowder, The Copper Onion, Salt Lake City: "The cantaloupes we get here are really sweet, so we counter that with savory flavors."

This recipe is part of the Epicurious Online Cooking School, in partnership with the Culinary Institute of America. To watch it being made, and to learn how to make other Mediterranean classics, check out the video classes.

Since I've spent so many years eating and cooking in Spain, I would be remiss if I didn't include a gazpacho in this book. But alas, this is not your abuela's gazpacho. In this version, peaches, plums, and watermelon all come together in a bright, colorful, chilled soup that is topped with a single seared diver scallop. The tart sour plums allow the sweet plump scallop to feel a little less self-conscious in its summery dress. If you can't find sour plums, substitute sweet plums, preferably golden plums, plus the juice of 2 lemons.

Martha served this gazpacho over tomato aspic in a glass as a portable first course, but the gazpacho can also be served on its own.

When the dog days of summer arrive, turn to this no-cook chilled soup. It is low in sodium and calories, contains no fat, and is quite refreshing.

This recipe was developed by Julie Robles, longtime Lucques cook, then souschef, then chef de cuisine. It’s one of those magical recipes in which you combine a few simple ingredients and end up with an unexpectedly dramatic result. It’s a foolproof recipe, but, tasting it, you’d never know how easy it is to make. As long as you have a blender (it doesn’t work as well in a food processor) and really great tomatoes, this refreshing gazpacho is a guaranteed crowd-pleaser.

Cold soup and hot shrimp—this is a fantastic combination on a warm night. Blending the honeyed sweetness of this summer melon with intensely savory vegetables makes this dish incredibly refreshing. And I give the hot, spicy shrimp a hit of freshness by grilling finely sliced mint right onto them.

It’s the surprising combination of sweet, tart, creamy, and crunchy additions that makes me crave this summery soup. This gazpacho is all about the garnishes.

This is one of our deli’s best-selling items in the summer. Two cups may seem like a lot of oil, but the soup really doesn’t have the same rich flavor with any less (we’ve tried). You can, of course, reduce the amount if you like. You can also use any combination of Roma and heirloom tomatoes.

At the 2001 Workshop, Chef Ken Vedrinski astonished guests with a “consommé” made from the strained juice of tomatoes and watermelon. Preparing the dish involved hanging the pureed fruits in a muslin bag overnight to collect the clear, sweet juices—a procedure that might deter many home cooks. Riffing on Chef Vedrinski’s idea, Brian created an easier gazpacho that blends tomato, watermelon, and other summer vegetables so seamlessly that you can’t decipher the contents. The result is a refreshing and original adaptation of the familiar Spanish soup.

WHY IT’S LIGHT Gazpacho is traditionally made with pieces of stale bread as a thickener. In this lightened version, vegetables alone contribute heft, and toasted bread is offered as an optional side.

This is not a particularly traditional version of this recipe, but if you have ripe delicious tomatoes, it makes a beautiful piquant summer soup—a sort of liquid salad—that’s worth all the grating, pounding, and dicing. For a light summer meal, add a few shrimp—or other fish or shellfish—to the soup.