Watermelon Gazpacho

08 May 2009

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From Gale Gand’s Brunch – Gale Gand, the newest additions to Chicago’s ambassador program, has produced a unique visitor’s guide to the culinary delights of her home city of Chicago – the birthplace of the deep dish pizza, and a destination full of gastronomic diversity. Whatever the taste or appetite, Chicago offers a true adventure in dining.

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 Gand, an Illinois native, works as executive pastry chef and partner for Tru, Osteria di Tramonto and Tramonto’s Steak & Seafood restaurants. Her Chicago roots brought her back to the city after a stint in Piccadilly, London. As a famed TV food personality, frequent media guest and active participant in community causes, Gand combines local consciousness with poetic dining creations.  Gand hosted her own Food Network show, ‘Sweet Dreams’, for eight years, has worked with Oprah Winfrey, and can be seen on ‘Iron Chef’ and ‘The Martha Stewart Show’. She also created her own root beer company, “Gale’s.” As a mother of three, Gand is a master of balancing career and family.

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My first dinner party in my own apartment when I went off to college was when my parents came to visit me half way through first semester to make sure I was OK at art school in Cleveland. I made tomato gazpacho, a fresh tomato soup made from a purree of fresh tomatoes with stir-ins, but I did things like cottage cheese, croutons, popcorn and then traditional vegetables like cucumbers, peppers. Here’s the latest version of that dish, thirty-some years later.

Makes 4 - 6 servings

4 cups water melon cubes, seeds removed as much as possible

Sugar to taste

½ cup English cucumber, seeded cubed

½ orange or red bell pepper, diced

1 green apple, cored and cubed

¼ cup pomegranate seeds

½ cup cubed fresh mozzarella

Place the seeded watermelon cubes in a blender and pulse briefly to purée, but try to leave some texture to them. Transfer it to something with a pour spout. Taste and sweeten with sugar if it’s tart.

Prepare all the chopped vegetables and fruit and keep chilled.

To serve, pour the watermelon soup into clear bowls or glasses with handles (the kind cappuccino is served in). Garnish with a bit of each vegetable, fruit and cheese, or set the cups of soup out and a buffet and the vegetables, fruit and cheese out on a buffet in small bowls with spoons and let people garnish their own soup.

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