Recipe from Easy Mediterranean, Murdoch Books. Photograph Alan Benson
I am always amazed by the incredible flavour that results from whizzing these very simple ingredients together. I don’t think there’s any finer soup to sip on a hot summer’s day.
Serves: 4
120g stale bread, torn into pieces (any kind is fine but sourdough is delicious)
4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil, plus extra for drizzling
1.5kg ripe tomatoes, roughly chopped
2 garlic cloves, chopped
60g blanched almonds (whole or flaked)
1 teaspoon flaked sea salt , plus extra to taste
3 large mint leaves, or extra to taste, plus leaves to serve
Serrano ham, chopped boiled egg, to serve (optional)
Place the bread in a bowl and pour over 1 tablespoon of the extra virgin olive oil. Set to one side.
Now, place the tomatoes, garlic and almonds in a food processor or blender and blitz until the mixture is as smooth as you can get it. Tip into a sieve set over a bowl and push the solids with the back of a spoon to extract as much liquid as possible. Don’t forget to scrape the doen bottom of the sieve and add these bits to the bowl too. Discard the solids left in the sieve, and pour the liquid back into the blender.
Add the soaked bread, the remaining 3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil, the sea salt flakes and mint, and blitz until smooth. Add a little water if too thick. Taste and add more salt or mint to taste – there should just be a fresh back note of mint, so don’t overdo it. Chill well, ideally for a couple of hours if you have time.
Serve topped with chopped mint and ham (chopped boiled eggs are also lovely) and a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil