Easy dinner recipes: Cool off with great gazpacho ideas for Gluten-free Wednesday

Gluten-free gazpacho? Sure, classic gazpacho is built around soaked bread, but you won’t miss it with these rich takes on the refreshing cold soup. From spicy cucumber to Thomas Keller’s refreshing vegetable, to a reader favorite from Urth Cafe, these no-cook soups will keep your kitchen cool and your dinner guests refreshed.

Urth Cafe’s gazpacho: Fresh tomato, cucumber, onion and bell pepper form the base of this soup, brightened with a touch of red wine vinegar and lemon juice and spiced with cayenne pepper and hot sauce. The dish itself comes together in only 30 minutes, then simply chill before serving.

Spicy cucumber gazpacho: This cool, vibrant green gazpacho from Esperanza An Auberge Resort at Cabo San Lucas packs flavor with refreshing cucumber, creamy yogurt, fresh lime juice, mint and cilantro, along with a nice jolt of heat from Thai chile pasta and jalapeno. The soup comes together in only 20 minutes.

Thomas Keller’s gazpacho: This gazpacho from Thomas Keller, featured as part of a master class on soups, is a perfect way to beat the heat. And it’s substantial enough to be a meal on its own. The soup itself comes together in less than 30 minutes. The recipe calls for chilling it overnight before blending and serving; this helps the flavors to develop and marry, though I’ve made the morning of, and also shortly before serving (chill over an ice bath, and leave a little thyme in while blending) and found the flavors still incredibly bright and refreshing. You can find the recipe below.

THOMAS KELLER’S GAZPACHO

Total time: 20 minutes, plus overnight refrigeration time | Makes about 1 1/2 quarts soup

1 cup chopped red onions
1 cup chopped green bell pepper
1 cup chopped English cucumber
1 cup peeled and chopped tomatoes
1 1/2 teaspoons chopped garlic
1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon cayenne
1/4 cup tomato paste
1 tablespoon white wine vinegar
1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
3 cups tomato juice
Sprig of thyme

In a large bowl, mix together the red onions, green bell pepper, English cucumber, tomatoes, garlic, salt, cayenne, tomato paste, white wine vinegar, olive oil, lemon juice, tomato juice and thyme. Cover and refrigerate overnight. The next day, remove the thyme and blend the soup in a blender until it is smooth; you will have about 1 1/2 quarts of soup. For a smoother texture, strain the soup; this will yield slightly less than 1 quart.

Each of 6 servings: 175 calories; 2 grams protein; 13 grams carbohydrates; 2 grams fiber; 14 grams fat; 2 grams saturated fat; 0 cholesterol; 9 grams sugar; 618 mg sodium.

Love cooking as much as I do? Follow me @noellecarter