Recently on a trip to California, my partner Joshua and I had a grape gazpacho at the de Young museum restaurant. It was so incredible, I decided to take a stab at my own version. This soup is my new hot summer night go-to. It works well because the grape isn’t overpowering and is balanced by the nuts and cucumber. But the preserved lemon is my favorite ingredient — it’s unusual and bright.
The de Young served the gazpacho with a swirl of crème fraîche, which was very good. However, Joshua is dairy free, so I tried my hand at making a vegan sour cream, using a recipe from the Gluten Free Vegan Pantry. I am going to keep that vegan sour cream in the refrigerator at all times, it’s that good.
This soup is lovely as either a side or as an entrée portion with a robust salad. The one cup portion below is the amount I’d recommend for a side, I serve a two cup portion for an entrée. So just adjust the recipe as needed for the number and portion size you desire. Enjoy!
- 2 cup green grapes, raw
- 1 cup almond milk original unsweetened
- ¼ cup almonds, raw, slivered
- ¼ cup pistachio nuts, raw
- 1 cup, seedless cucumber, peeled & cubed, raw
- 2 Tbl preserved lemon, minced
- 1 Tbl chopped Shallots, raw
- Soak almonds and pistachios in hot water for ~1 hour then drain.
- Wash and de-stem grapes.
- Peel and dice cucumber.
- Mince shallot.
- Chop preserved lemon, place 1 Tbl into blender, reserve other 1 Tbl for garnish.
- Add all ingredients to blender with almond milk.
- Season to taste with salt and fresh ground pepper.
- Blend for 1 minute or until smooth.
- Place in refrigerator to chill.
- Serve in bowls with a swirl of creme fresh or vegan sour cream.
*Not all calories are equal.