On the Back Porch and Watermelon Gazpacho!

I’m on the Back Porch trying to beat the heat,

 and staying cool with Watermelon Gazpacho!

Refreshing, light, and flavorful for the summertime.

Best of all, no oven required and you can mix up a small batch of this gazpacho, altering the ingredients to your taste!

Watermelon Gazpacho,

adapted from Martha Stewart

Ingredients

*5 cups peeled, seeded, and roughly chopped watermelon, plus 1 cup finely chopped

*1/2 cup cranberry juice

1 cup peeled, seeded, and diced cucumber (I used an English cucumber, no seeding or peeling needed)

1 cup diced celery (I used 1/2 cup)

3/4 cup diced red bell pepper

1/4 cup diced red onion

1/4 cup fresh mint leaves, minced

1/4 cup fresh parsley, minced

Juice of 1 lime

1 1/2 tablespoons sherry vinegar (I substituted white balsamic vinegar)

1 tablespoon jalapeno pepper, minced

* I added additional watermelon (chopped slightly larger) so the gazpacho had a little more texture, along with more cranberry juice until I had desired consistency for us.

Directions

Combine 5 cups watermelon and the cranberry juice in a blender or food processor, and puree until mixture is smooth. Pass through a fine sieve into a large bowl, discarding pulp to give you approximately 3 cups of strained liquid.

Add cucumber, celery, bell pepper, onion, herbs, lime juice, vinegar, jalapeno, and remaining chopped melon to watermelon liquid, and stir to combine. Cover with plastic wrap, and place in refrigerator until soup is well chilled, at least 1 hour. Serve, or store in refrigerator up to 1 day.

You can find a printable recipe, here.

I skewered blackberries and cubes of watermelon on bamboo knots picks (World Market) to garnish the jars for serving! Serve your gazpacho in glasses, jars, or even shot glasses for shooter/ appetizer servings if your fruit and veggies are a fine dice.

I highly recommend adding some feta cheese crumbles to this watermelon gazpacho (and didn’t get a picture of). The creamy, salty cheese is the perfect partner to the sweet, juicy melon!

Porch Details:

Very Berry Tablecloth by Moda/ Amazon

Flatware/ Pottery Barn

Red Marble Enamelware, Crow Canyon Home/ Mast General Store

Jars by Ball :)

I hope you’re staying cool and

finding ways to beat the heat!

You can find me

On the Back Porch at

Cedar Hill Farmhouse today. . .

 I hope you’ll stop by for a visit!

Thank you for your visit, I’m joining:

 Metamorphosis Monday, The Scoop,

Inspire Me Tuesday, Wow Us Wednesdays, Home Sweet Home

 Tablescape Thursday, Foodie Friday