It’s summer. It’s beautiful and sunny and—it’s hot.

I’d try to describe the burning inferno that is living in Okinawa this time of year, but chances are, it’s f-ing hot where you live too, so you get it.

As much as I enjoy cooking, I cannot get myself to turn on the stove or use the oven this time of year. The only problem with this is that I still have to eat!

This Gazpacho is perfect and has saved the day on many a hot occasions. No cooking necessary. Chop, blend, and eat.

It’s perfect on a hot summer day for a number of reasons, but mainly because our bodies and our metabolisms start to slow down this time of year making it difficult for our digestive systems to process all the cooked stuff. Doing so takes a lot of energy and heats up the body. Not to mention it makes us sluggish and tired.

Gazpacho is raw, light and helps to cool the body down. Plus it’s packed with veggies making it crazy healthy. Oh, and it’s delicious.

Ingredients:

3 garlic cloves
3 large tomatoes 
1 medium cucumber
1 green bell pepper
1 red bell pepper
1 medium sweet onion
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil (plus some for drizzling)
2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
1 cup cold water
Salt and freshly ground pepper

Directions:

1) Wash and chop all veggies. Put in blender. 

2) Blend.

3) Serve chilled with fresh parsley, avocado or just some olive oil drizzled on top.

 

 

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Editor: Travis May

Photo Credit: St0rmz/Flickr Creative Commons