White Gazpacho with Cucumbers and Grapes

Here’s your secret weapon for a late-summer heat wave. It’s hard to explain how utterly refreshing this soup is, lemony and slightly spicy with a hint of sweetness for mystery. Is it really white? No—palest green. Is it really a gazpacho? Who knows and who cares? It’s delicious and easy  to make.

By Maya Parson | July 07, 2016

Ingredients

1½ pounds Persian cucumbers
4–5 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
2 cloves garlic
1½ teaspoons sea salt, plus more to taste
1 teaspoon fresh serrano chile, chopped
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for garnish
1 pound (2½ cups) seedless green grapes
1 cup Greek-style yogurt
Freshly ground black pepper to taste
Chopped or sliced roasted almonds (optional)
Sliced green or red grapes  (optional)

Instructions

Serves 5–6

Wash and trim the cucumbers. Test the ends for bitterness, and slice them. (These thin-skinned cucumbers don’t need to be peeled.) You should have about 4½ cups.

Put the cucumbers, 4 tablespoons lemon juice, garlic, salt and chile into a blender and puree. Add the olive oil and the grapes and puree until smooth.

Transfer the soup to a bowl and whisk in yogurt, grind in some black pepper and taste. Adjust the seasoning with a pinch more salt or a little more lemon juice  if needed.

Chill the soup very well. Garnish each bowl of soup with a thin drizzle of oil and a scattering of almonds and grapes.

An omnivore way: A seafood garnish could be added on top of this soup—cold cooked shrimp or crab, tossed with some olive oil, lemon and a pinch of spicy pimentón.