GREEN MARKET GOLD!

STROLLING BACK FROM THE STRAND, and after buying yet more cookbooks (!!!) and one about Wagner, Ludwig and I perused the stalls at the Union Square Green Market. We came upon some very overripe heirloom tomatoes (green, yellow, gold and red) for $1.00 a pound. I picked out a few and the girl at the counter kept telling me to put in more and more. Finally, I carried away about 15 gems (for $2.00!) and immediately went home and made Gazpacho. You know what they say, the best things in life are free - or almost.

CHUNKY GAZPACHO

I happen to like Gazpacho with great chunks of vegetables in it. The pureed counterpart is sometimes rather too thick and oppressive in its paste-like consistency. It's nice to be able to taste each of the ingredients on their own terms; especially the pepper! The best Gazpacho I ever had and one I've been trying to imitate for ages, was at a tiny restaurant called Cafe 1505 in a suburb of Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Theirs is utterly delicious and full of chunky morsels of peppers and cucumbers. They also make a mean egg salad sandwich (always hard to find in my estimation).

Anyway, in this particular case, since my creation yesterday was so impromptu, I had to improvise with the very hot green Thai chiles instead of the traditional Jalapeño. The addition of Tabasco at the end is the finishing touch to the heat in this very cold dish. Fire and ice!

12-16 very ripe, chopped red tomatoes or a variety of colors (if you like)

1 large seedless cucumber, peeled and diced

1 large diced yellow or orange pepper (I know, I know, green is the mandatory ingredient, but . . . )

1 onion, diced

3 stalks of celery, diced

6 Cloves of Garlic

2 whole Jalapeños, seeds removed and diced

Juice of 2 limes

4 tbs. Olive Oil

2 tbs. red Jerez vinegar

1/4 cup Sherry

2-3 dashes Tabasco

Salt

Place the garlic and the equivalent of one of the jalapeños and process in the food processor until a paste is formed. Take half of the tomatoes, half of all the other diced ingredients, and process in a food processor until fine chunks still show in the liquid soup. Place the contents in the processor in a large bowl and mix the rest of the ingredients, including the remaining diced vegetables until well combined. Do not salt until after the soup has chilled for at least 2 hours. Salt to taste and serve immediately.

Gazpacho can be refrigerated for several days, but I don't recommend freezing.