Cucumber Avocado Gazpacho
You will find this cool and creamy cucumber avocado soup refreshing on a hot summer day. I've been drinking it all weekend and experimenting with it along the way.
I tried making it with raw garlic, which did not go down as smoothly as I thought it would, so I eliminated that ingredient. However I did leave in the raw onion as it added a very sharp yet sweet flavor.
According to my first friend in the entire world, Amy Merideth (we go back to age 2) this recipe is an optimal way to use up leftover cucumbers, which apparently her mom, Beth, has a lot of. It's also a nice way to rehydrate yourself after a long day in the hot summer's sun.
1 small avocado
1 cucumber, peeled and de-seeded, plus additional cuke for garnish
1 tablespoon onion, minced
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
¼ teaspoon celtic sea salt
¼ teaspoon chili powder
1 cup water
smoked paprika, to garnish
- Throw avocado, cucumber, onion, oil, lemon juice, vinegar and water in vita-mix
- Puree on high speed until smooth
- Blend in salt and chili powder
- Serve, garnishing with extra cucumber cubes and smoked paprika if desired
Serves 2
Now and then I like to highlight reader's comments that are especially captivating. Here's a favorite, that I just received a few days ago, from Kristin; she describes a conversation with her 5 year old daughter and it's a real gem.
"Hey Mom, did you bake without me?"
"Sorry hon, I wanted to try a new Elana recipe."
"Well, what's in 'em?"
"Almond meal, flax meal, eggs, dates, raisins."
"Hmm. That's all? No agave?" "Nope."
"Well, the dates and the raisins give them a really nice sweetness. Mild, but good. I love them, even if you did make them without me."
Welcome to Elana's Pantry!
If you enjoyed the recipe above please take a moment to look at the rest of my gluten free recipes.You can also read more about me, peruse my forums or subscribe to Elana's Pantry below and receive an email anytime I post a recipe. Thanks!
Posted on August 3, 2009 in soups by Elana
you might also like: Green Soup with Ginger
or Pumpkin Ginger Soup
stumble it share on facebook site feed email subscription
print friendly recipe
email this
20 comments
Wow, this sounds so delicious and like a wonderful way to use some of my many cucumbers from my CSA! I will be making this for lunch tomorrow- can't wait!
I love gazpacho So refreshing and perfect for a hot summer day!
This sounds amazing, I'm leading a cleanse right now and this is one I will share with everyone!!!
I love the reader comment, my son would have the same reaction to me baking with out him!
Mmmm... this sounds wonderful!
I just made your coconut cupcakes and used cut up strawberries in them in place of the blueberries and raspberries. Wow! So good.
This looks soo tasty! I can't wait to try this :) I need to go get some more avocados...
Ahh, too bad the raw garlic version didn't work out - I'm a garlic fanatic!! But hey, anything with avocados is a winner to me, so I'm still all over that soup :-D
It has been pretty hot here in Seattle lately so I have been experimenting with cold soups. I just recently posted a recipe for traditional tomato gazpacho but have never though of making a cucumber avocado version. I love both of those so I am sure this would be delicious!
I would love that. Cucumbers are so cooling and great to eat by themselves, so in this soup they must be really terrific. Kinda funny on the garlic because I've experienced the same thing before. It goes so well with so many recipes, but every now and then it can actually ruin a recipe.
Thanks for sharing the conversation between mother and daughter! That young lady sounds like an informed consumer. :-) Another one who is learning about all things food early, like your sons ... just wonderful.
Elana -
It was sweet to see the conversation with my daughter highlighted! Your cookbook arrived today, and my 8 year old and I made your lemon bars. I didn't have enough lemons, so we used a combination of lemons and limes. They were the best lemon bars I have ever had, gluten-free or otherwise!
Thanks!
Lemon bars? I cannot find that recipe. I did the Elana google search and did not find it. Lemon bars are my favorite! Oh, and the soup looks great too!
Lorri,
the lemon bars are only available in the cookbook.
It sounds wonderful! I am so excited to have some gazpacho without tomatoes!! Much as I love them they do not love me. "-(
Besides being delicious to eat, gazpacho is just a fun word to say! Gazpacho! I actually didn't know what it was until last week my physical therapist mentioned she thought it was a recipe I could eat. So I have been googling for gazpacho recipes. I think this is the one I am going to go with because of the addition of avocado, love those green healthy fats!
Thanks for sharing that sweet comment about mother and daughter, oh so precious!
I must agree - juiced cucumbers are one of my favorite ways to rehydrate after a being out in the Texas heat. I also love to juice them with celery and spinach.
I was just rejected from a gazpacho class because the instructor uses cilantro (which I despise). I was so sad because I've been so excited about delving into the gazpacho world this summer but in all my searching around I haven't seen even one recipe that has cilantro yet the teacher insists it can't be left out.
So I'm especially glad to see this one especially since I just finished a chunky cucumber, onion, avocado salad with a small heirloom tomato and yes, raw garlic (though it wasn't blended but it also could be the variety which I've found can be very different from each other -- I ate a whole bulb the other day of a purple variety raw and by itself, just nibbling on the cloves directly). I also added a splash of champagne vinegar, some sea salt and ground cumin. Gosh it was good and satisfying and cooling. So your soup sounds fabulous!
Do you like parsley? Maybe you could use it instead since you don't like cilantro. My husband doesn't like it much either but I love it. I have a row of it in my garden. Have a great week.
I just made this, and the kids really liked it. So refreshing and yummy. Too bad I didn't have some fresh lemonade. Two of the kids heated it up and liked it better that way than cold. The 20 month old didn't like it so much. My 11 year old asked, "Mom, what's in this?" and the baby said, "Caca!" Nice....= ) What timing he has. He's a clown.
Elana,
I have 5 or 6 avacado just waiting for me to do something with and surprisingly I have all the other ingredients for the gazpacho. I just checked my email and found your delicious recipe but unfortunately I have to wait until tomorrow to try it. It's 12:10 am and I need to get to bed so I can get up early and make it. I'm drooling just thinking about eating it. I'll let you know tomorrow how it turns out.
I am making this tomorrow but not in a vita-mix. Keep teasing and you may need to get me one. HAHA
I was thrilled to see a gazpacho recipe without tomatoes!! I made this tonight and it is just wonderful! I threw some Thai basil into a little of it to see how it would change the flavor -- made the flavors a bit more complex but not noticeably different. This is so simple I know I'll be making this whenever avocados are cost-effective. :-D