A perfectly refreshing end-of-summer gazpacho. (That’s also perfectly easy to customize with whatever ingredients you have on hand. By Gimme Some Oven … Simply yumful!

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YIELD: 4 SERVINGS  PREP TIME: 10 MINS    COOK TIME: 0 MINS     TOTAL TIME: 10 MINS

INGREDIENTS:

  • 2 pounds fresh tomatoes (I used a mixture of roma and cherry tomatoes)
  • 1 English cucumber, peeled and cut into large chunks
  • 1 small red bell pepper, cored and cut into large chunks
  • quarter of a red onion, peeled
  • 2 garlic cloves, peeled
  • 1/4 cup lightly-packed fresh basil leaves
  • 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • pinch of Kosher salt and freshly-cracked black pepper (optional: and crushed red pepper flakes)
  • optional garnishes: extra chopped tomatoes, red onion, basil, olive oil, and/or salt and pepper

DIRECTIONS:

  1. Add all ingredients to a blender or large food processor, and puree until completely smooth.  (If all of the ingredients don’t initially fit, you can puree the first half of the ingredients, then gradually add more in as there is more room available.)
  2. Taste, and season with extra salt and pepper and/or lemon juice if needed.
  3. Cover and refrigerate for a few hours to chill.  Or serve immediately, topped with your desired garnishes.