I can't remember the last time the high temperature for the day involved fewer than three digits. Of course, this isn't a surprise. What is a surprise, though, is that this summer doesn't seem nearly as bad as my previous Phx summer, during which I spent much of my time begging for the sweet release of death, or maybe just a cold spell.
I haven't been able to figure out why I'm tolerating this go-around better. Has this summer been less horrible? Or, God forbid, am I getting used to this? I mean, it is still all quite terrible, and I have been dreaming of fall ever since July, but I do feel like I've been less angry at the weather this year. Maybe I'm just mellowing out in my old age? The mind boggles.
The other possibility is that I've learned how to better co-exist with the blistering heat, in that I no longer do things like try to bake bread in an oven that expends more heat than it uses to actually cook things. We've changed our dining habits to better include foods that don't require constant hovering over the stove or that can be made in non-stove appliances (like toaster ovens).
The best way to win the food battle against the sun, however, is to just eschew cooking at all. Enter gazpacho! No heating elements are required, and it's fantastically simple and easy. This recipe was given to me by a friend from Spain, and it's actually her mother's recipe, so you know it's legit.
First, you're going to need tomatoes. A lot of tomatoes. At least two pounds. Lucky for those of you who live in areas with normal growing seasons, you should be flush with tomatoes now. I used Roma tomatoes, because they are good and meaty, but any tomato, so long as it is fresh and ripe, will do. You can even mix tomatoes, if you are into that sort of thing. Quarter and de-seed your tomatoes (you can also peel them, if you're dedicated). De-seed and roughly chop both a green and a red bell pepper, along with a cucumber (I used a Striped Armenian cucumber, which didn't require de-seeding, but if you're using a standard hothouse cuke with large seeds, you might want to de-seed this as well) and about 1/4 an onion. Peel some garlic, as much as you'd like (I was told that proper gazpacho should be right garlicky, so I used almost an entire head).
Blend all the chopped veggies together in a food processor to your preferred chunkiness (depending on the size of your food processor [or the amount of vegetables you're starting with], you may need to do this in batches). I like my gazpacho hearty, so I only run the food pro until everything is just diced, but if you want a smooth soup, let it go for longer and use a food mill to strain out the seeds and skins (you can also add a little water to each batch if you want to thin it out a bit). Mix in vinegar (I used apple cider vinegar) and salt to taste; note that the vinegar flavor will become more pronounced after it has chilled, so stop just before you get to your preferred tang, and don't be surprised if you need a lot of salt—it can take it. Pop it into the fridge for 15–30 minutes to chill and allow the flavors to meld together (you can certainly leave it for longer, if you want a really cold soup).
You can drizzle a bit of olive oil over the top, or add ribbons of fresh basil (as I did). Served with a grilled cheese sandwich, it makes for a refreshing lunch or dinner on a triple-digit summer's day/eve. Take that, desert heat!
I haven't been able to figure out why I'm tolerating this go-around better. Has this summer been less horrible? Or, God forbid, am I getting used to this? I mean, it is still all quite terrible, and I have been dreaming of fall ever since July, but I do feel like I've been less angry at the weather this year. Maybe I'm just mellowing out in my old age? The mind boggles.
The other possibility is that I've learned how to better co-exist with the blistering heat, in that I no longer do things like try to bake bread in an oven that expends more heat than it uses to actually cook things. We've changed our dining habits to better include foods that don't require constant hovering over the stove or that can be made in non-stove appliances (like toaster ovens).
The best way to win the food battle against the sun, however, is to just eschew cooking at all. Enter gazpacho! No heating elements are required, and it's fantastically simple and easy. This recipe was given to me by a friend from Spain, and it's actually her mother's recipe, so you know it's legit.
First, you're going to need tomatoes. A lot of tomatoes. At least two pounds. Lucky for those of you who live in areas with normal growing seasons, you should be flush with tomatoes now. I used Roma tomatoes, because they are good and meaty, but any tomato, so long as it is fresh and ripe, will do. You can even mix tomatoes, if you are into that sort of thing. Quarter and de-seed your tomatoes (you can also peel them, if you're dedicated). De-seed and roughly chop both a green and a red bell pepper, along with a cucumber (I used a Striped Armenian cucumber, which didn't require de-seeding, but if you're using a standard hothouse cuke with large seeds, you might want to de-seed this as well) and about 1/4 an onion. Peel some garlic, as much as you'd like (I was told that proper gazpacho should be right garlicky, so I used almost an entire head).
Blend all the chopped veggies together in a food processor to your preferred chunkiness (depending on the size of your food processor [or the amount of vegetables you're starting with], you may need to do this in batches). I like my gazpacho hearty, so I only run the food pro until everything is just diced, but if you want a smooth soup, let it go for longer and use a food mill to strain out the seeds and skins (you can also add a little water to each batch if you want to thin it out a bit). Mix in vinegar (I used apple cider vinegar) and salt to taste; note that the vinegar flavor will become more pronounced after it has chilled, so stop just before you get to your preferred tang, and don't be surprised if you need a lot of salt—it can take it. Pop it into the fridge for 15–30 minutes to chill and allow the flavors to meld together (you can certainly leave it for longer, if you want a really cold soup).
You can drizzle a bit of olive oil over the top, or add ribbons of fresh basil (as I did). Served with a grilled cheese sandwich, it makes for a refreshing lunch or dinner on a triple-digit summer's day/eve. Take that, desert heat!
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