Gazpacho

Recipe from Christmas Dinner Night

Ingredients

1 red capsicum

1 tbs vegetable oil

salt and pepper

1 telegraph cucumber

1 spanish onion, roughly chopped

2 cloves garlic, roughly chopped

3kg vine-ripened tomatoes, roughly chopped

1/4 bunch green basil, picked

2tsp Tabasco sauce
50ml sherry vinegar

100ml olive oil

2 slices bread

720ml tomato passata

Method
Preheat oven to 180.
Cut the capsicum in half then remove the stalk and seeds.
Toss with a little vegetable oil, season with salt and pepper and place on a baking tray.
Cook in the oven for about 30minutes until tender.
Transfer the capsicum to a bowl, cover with plastic wrap and leave to steam for 20 minutes.
After steaming remove and discard the skins from the capsicum.
Chop the capsicum flesh roughly and place in a bowl.
Peel the cucumber then remove the seeds.
Roughly chop the cucumber and place in the bowl with the capsicum.
Add the chopped onion, garlic, tomatoes, basil leaves, Tabasco sauce, sherry vinegar, olive oil, bread and passata, then season with salt and pepper.
Mix together until combined, then cover with plastic wrap.
Leave to marinade in the refrigerator overnight to allow the flavours to infuse.

To serve, blend the soup until smooth then pass through a sieve.  Serve chilled with croutons.  Serves 10.