Gazpacho with Crispy Chickpea Croutons

Gazpacho is a classic, cold Spanish soup that’s known for its refreshing and vibrant flavors. In fact, the best bowl of gazpacho I ever had was in Seville, Spain. I ordered it on a hot day during the Spanish summer and it was the perfect dish to eat. When I got home I wanted to recreate it but without all of the crusty bread typically served with it. So I figured out how to turn chickpeas into “croutons.”

Gazpacho with Crispy Chickpea Croutons

Whenever we have an abundance of tomatoes from the garden, we’ll either make a stovetop marinara sauce or we’ll use the tomatoes for this easy gazpacho recipe. Any tomatoes leftover? We’ll freeze them.

I can remember putting gazpacho in a thermos to take with me to the pool club in the summer. It was a much healthier lunch option than the food the snack bar offered. This is truly my favorite summer soup. It is a beautiful blend of fresh vegetables and herbs, all pureed to create a chilled soup that’s bursting with flavor.

This gazpacho recipe does not include any animal products so you can serve it to your vegan friends.

Gazpacho Recipe Ingredients

There are two sets of ingredients for this recipe. They are the supplies you’ll need to bake the chickpeas into makeshift croutons. And then there is the gazpacho soup itself.

Chickpea “Crouton” Ingredients

• 15 1/2 ounces chickpeas one can, drained and rinsed
• 3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil divided
• 1 1/2 teaspoons ground cumin
• 1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika
• sea salt and black pepper to taste

Gazpacho Ingredients

• 1 medium red onion roughly chopped
• 1 large red bell pepper roughly chopped
• 1 large cucumber peeled and roughly chopped
• 5 large tomatoes roughly chopped
• 3 fresh garlic cloves
• 3/4 cup water
• 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
• 3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice divided
• 1/4 cup fresh basil roughly chopped
• 1/2 cup fresh parsley chopped
• sea salt or kosher salt and black pepper to taste
• 1 medium avocado
• sprigs of fresh basil or parsley for garnish

Instructions

Just like the ingredients, the recipe instructions include two separate parts: one making the chickpea croutons and the other the gazpacho soup.

• Prep time: 20 minutes
• Chill time: 30 minutes
• Total time: about an hour

Making Chickpea Croutons

1. Place the top oven rack in the center position and preheat the oven to 400 F. Line a large, rimmed baking sheet with a piece of parchment paper or a Silpat baking mat. Set aside.
2. In a medium bowl, toss the chickpeas with one tablespoon of olive oil, ground cumin and smoked paprika. Season with salt and black pepper, to taste, and toss to combine.
3. Spread seasoned chickpeas onto the prepared baking sheet and place in the pre-heated oven to roast until golden-brown and crispy, approximately 15-20 minutes. For more uniform results, turn the chickpeas or give the pan a good shake halfway through cooking.
4. Once the chickpeas are golden and crispy, remove from the oven and set aside to cool. They will become crispier as they cool. Store in an airtight container if using the next day.

Making the Gazpacho

1. Finely dice one quarter of the red onion, bell pepper and cucumber. Set aside.
2. Place the tomatoes, plus the remaining red onion, bell pepper and cucumber in a food processor or high-powered blender. Add the garlic, water, red wine vinegar, two tablespoons lemon juice and fresh herbs. Season with salt and black pepper, to taste and quickly pulse until the mixture is mostly smooth or has the texture you desire.
3. Transfer the gazpacho to a large bowl made of glass or another non-reactive material, such as stainless steel or ceramic. Cover and place in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes to overnight to chill.
4. Right before serving, dice the avocado and toss with the remaining tablespoon lemon juice to prevent browning. Set aside.
5. Transfer the chilled soup into individual serving bowls and top with some of the finely diced red onion, bell pepper and cucumber. Garnish with the crispy chickpeas, diced avocado and sprigs of fresh herbs, if using. Serve with a dollop of sour cream or plain Greek yogurt. Enjoy!

Notes

Blending the fresh herbs with the vegetables yields a more robust, uniform flavor. However, this also affects the color of the finished cold soup. For a brighter red color, don’t blend the fresh herbs with the other ingredients when preparing. Finely mince and stir them in after blending, instead.

Assuming you’re using red tomatoes, such as roma tomatoes, you’ll have a red gazpacho. However, if you do want to play around with color, outside of blending the herbs, you can use heirloom tomatoes in various colors, such as yellow, orange or purple. Similarly, you can add green bell peppers, along with the red bell peppers, to the gazpacho recipe so have flecks of green throughout.