Have you ever tried ajo blanco? Popular in Spain, it’s a white gazpacho made with blanched almonds and lots of garlic, thickened with bread. Even though I visited Spain before going gluten-free, I sadly never came across it.
If I had, I would probably be better able to describe to you whether my pecan gazpacho is indeed similar to ajo blanco. I can venture a guess that it is – it’s creamy, nutty, tart, and refreshing – and certainly resembles that classic Spanish white gazpacho visually. But there are several differences between this recipe and a traditional ajo blanco, which I’ll enumerate for my fellow cooking nerds below. For the rest of you, all you need to know is that this pecan-based version of white gazpacho is one of the best cold soups I’ve ever had.
So, how does this recipe differ from a traditional Spanish white gazpacho? Well, as I alluded to above, I’ve used pecans instead of almonds, soaked overnight for a smooth texture. Additionally, while ajo blanco does often feature green grapes, they aren’t typically blended into the soup, like I do here. Finally, there’s no bread at all in my recipe (don’t worry, the soup is still the proper texture without it!), I’ve used garlic-infused oil instead of raw garlic, and I’ve added a secret ingredient to top it all off: fennel. Blending in some fennel bulb with the pecans and grapes really creates a luscious, complex flavor that you probably won’t even be able to place right away. You’ll just know that you want to keep eating it.
A couple notes about the recipe:
-You do have to blend this at high speed for a while to get a smooth texture. However, if you blend it for too long, you may get a lot of bubbles and air that don’t really need to be watering down the flavor of your soup. To get rid of any excess bubbles, turn the blender back to the lowest speed and blend only until the liquid at the top starts to circulate.
-This recipe makes 2 1/4 cups of soup. A 3/4 cup serving is Low FODMAP.
-While I found this soup pretty darn flavorful as soon as it was done chilling; like all soups, it’ll be even better the next day.
White Gazpacho
- ½ cup raw, shelled pecans, soaked overnight, then drained and rinsed.
- ½ cup chopped fennel bulb
- ½ cup green grapes, plus extra for topping the soups
- ⅓ cup scallions (dark green part only)
- 1 ¼ cup water
- 1 teaspoon garlic infused olive oil
- 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
- ½ teaspoon celtic sea salt
- 1 teaspoon good quality, rich & complex red wine vinegar (I used this one)
- Plenty of freshly ground black pepper, to taste
Directions:
Blend all ingredients in a Vitamix or other high-powered blender, gradually increasing to high speed until smooth (70-90 seconds). Once smooth, remove any excess bubbles by returning the blender to low speed and blending just until the liquid at the top starts to circulate. Transfer to an air-tight container and chill completely. To serve, add a sprinkling of halved green grapes to each bowl along with some minced parsley, if desired.
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