Happy Boy and I have been working our way through the Pedro Almodovar box set. He's one of my favorite directors and has created some of the most memorable characters and films. One of my favorite films is Woman on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown. It's a comedy with Carmen Maura and Antonio Banderas, involving chance coincidences, a crazy ex-wife, a mattress on fire, a friend running from a one-night stand with a terrorist, and a blender of barbituate-spiked gazpacho. Everyone has a little taste by the end.
One of my other favorite Almodovar films is Broken Embraces with Penelope Cruz and Lluis Homar Toboso, another film that involves spiked gazpacho. This time Almodovar cleverly references his first Oscar-nominated film, Woman on the Verge, by going behind the scenes, including the drama behind its creation. It's a beautiful movie about love and creation defying obstacles. Also the "scene" from Woman on the Verge, is totally different and totally hilarious.
It may be cold enough in Oakland to curl up with these films, but out in Chowchilla it is still hot and, with all that sun, the Happy Boy tomato farms will be going strong, possibly until late November! Everything rides on that first frost or cold snap. As soon as that happens, it's mush-city and tomatoes will be gone, gone, gone. So get 'em while they last.
A delicious version of gazpacho (barbituates optional) is the Alice Waters recipe from The Art of Simple Food. When I first read it through, I thought only someone as crazy and purist as Alice Waters would grate tomatoes and pound garlic and ancho chile into a paste with a mortar and pestle. So I made a different version. One that was more salsa-esque. I don't recommend it. Unless you have a bag of corn chips and a taste for bland salsa, don't do it. I recommend you be crazy and purist instead. Turns out it's not that hard (though I cheated and used the grater disc on my cuisanart)! Go the distance and try this recipe of Alice's. It's to die for. I think Almodovar and Carmen would agree: Que rico!
Gazpacho
Yield ~3 quarts; 6-8 servings
Soak in a bowl of hot water for 15 minutes:
1 dried ancho chile
Drain and crush to a paste with a medium-size mortar and pestle. Remove and set aside.
In another bowl, soak in cold water for 2 minutes:
2 cups crustless cubes of day-old country-style white bread
Drain and squeeze out the excess water.
In the mortar and pestle, pound together into a paste:
2 garlic cloves
A pinch of salt
Add the soaked bread, pound until smooth, and set aside.
Cut in half horizontally:
5 pounds ripe tomatoes
Over a bowl, grate the cut sides of the tomatoes on the medium holes of a box grater until only the skin is left. Discard the skins. Pass the pulp through a strainer to remove seeds, if you like.
One of my other favorite Almodovar films is Broken Embraces with Penelope Cruz and Lluis Homar Toboso, another film that involves spiked gazpacho. This time Almodovar cleverly references his first Oscar-nominated film, Woman on the Verge, by going behind the scenes, including the drama behind its creation. It's a beautiful movie about love and creation defying obstacles. Also the "scene" from Woman on the Verge, is totally different and totally hilarious.
It may be cold enough in Oakland to curl up with these films, but out in Chowchilla it is still hot and, with all that sun, the Happy Boy tomato farms will be going strong, possibly until late November! Everything rides on that first frost or cold snap. As soon as that happens, it's mush-city and tomatoes will be gone, gone, gone. So get 'em while they last.A delicious version of gazpacho (barbituates optional) is the Alice Waters recipe from The Art of Simple Food. When I first read it through, I thought only someone as crazy and purist as Alice Waters would grate tomatoes and pound garlic and ancho chile into a paste with a mortar and pestle. So I made a different version. One that was more salsa-esque. I don't recommend it. Unless you have a bag of corn chips and a taste for bland salsa, don't do it. I recommend you be crazy and purist instead. Turns out it's not that hard (though I cheated and used the grater disc on my cuisanart)! Go the distance and try this recipe of Alice's. It's to die for. I think Almodovar and Carmen would agree: Que rico!
Gazpacho
Yield ~3 quarts; 6-8 servings
Soak in a bowl of hot water for 15 minutes:
1 dried ancho chile
Drain and crush to a paste with a medium-size mortar and pestle. Remove and set aside.
In another bowl, soak in cold water for 2 minutes:
2 cups crustless cubes of day-old country-style white bread
Drain and squeeze out the excess water.
In the mortar and pestle, pound together into a paste:
2 garlic cloves
A pinch of salt
Add the soaked bread, pound until smooth, and set aside.Cut in half horizontally:
5 pounds ripe tomatoes
Over a bowl, grate the cut sides of the tomatoes on the medium holes of a box grater until only the skin is left. Discard the skins. Pass the pulp through a strainer to remove seeds, if you like.
Stir the chile puree and the bread paste into the tomato pulp in a large bowl. Add:
1/4 C extra-virgin olive oil
Salt
Refrigerate until well chilled. Taste for seasoning before serving and adjust as needed.
Make a relish to garnish the soup. It is also delicious without the relish.
Mix together:
1/2 pound cherry tomatoes, halved
1 cucumber, peeled and diced
1 yellow pepper, seeded and diced
1/2 red onion, diced
A handful each of chopped chervil and basil
2 T red wine vinegar
1/4 C extra-virgin olive oil
Salt
Fresh ground black pepper
Optional: Add a few shrimp or other fish or shellfish to the soup for a meal. Yum!
1/4 C extra-virgin olive oil
Salt
Refrigerate until well chilled. Taste for seasoning before serving and adjust as needed.
Make a relish to garnish the soup. It is also delicious without the relish.
Mix together:
1/2 pound cherry tomatoes, halved
1 cucumber, peeled and diced
1 yellow pepper, seeded and diced
1/2 red onion, diced
A handful each of chopped chervil and basil
2 T red wine vinegar
1/4 C extra-virgin olive oil
Salt
Fresh ground black pepper
Optional: Add a few shrimp or other fish or shellfish to the soup for a meal. Yum!
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