Cold Food

Like much of the the nation it was hot again today in Buffalo...sticky, humid hot. I had a medium-sized party at work and thankfully much of the food was cold...great for a hot day. Two of the courses--Gazpacho and Salade Nicoise--are also two of my favorite summertime foods. For this reason I thought I'd share a couple pictures and recipes. The recipe for Gazpacho (posted below) was originally published in this article for Artvoice (click here for more tomato recipes). And while I don't have a typed recipe for the entree salad, this looks like a good one; it's a recipe from Julia Child.  I also recommend serving Aioli with Salade Nicoise (click here for my recipe at Alternet). All of these recipes can be made ahead, so you'll be sure to keep cool at mealtime.

Gazpacho

Makes: 4-5 cups

2 cups diced tomatoes

1/2 cup diced red bell peppers

1/2 cup diced cucumbers

1/4 cup breadcrumbs

1/4 cup diced onion

1/4 cup olive oil

2 tablespoons white wine vinegar

1 tablespoon hot pepper sauce

2 teaspoon minced garlic

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon black pepper

1/2 teaspoon basil

1/2 teaspoon oregano

Combine all of the ingredients in a large bowl and mix together. Transfer to a blender or food processor and process until a course puree. Gazpacho may be served chilled or at room temperature. Traditional garnishes are raw onion, hard cooked egg, chopped parsley, and olives.