My Own Awesome Gazpacho for Dipping

This recipe is my very own. I wanted a cross between bruschetta and gazpacho, but thicker and richer so you can dip your bread into it.  Part is cooked, and part is left raw.  You will need a food processor as the chunks are very small.  There are a lot of ingredients, but the final result is so delicious. I brought it to a get-together and everyone loved it!

Ingredients

1 red onion, chopped and divided in half
4 cloves of garlic, chopped small and divided in half
2 medium red bell peppers, chopped and divided in half
1 jalapeno pepper, seeded and chopped fine
Extra virgin olive oil
1 14 oz. can Glen Muir Fire Roasted Diced Tomatoes
1 14 oz. can Glen Muir Fire Roasted Crush Tomatoes
1 14 oz. can tomato sauce
1 tsp. dried oregano
1 tsp. ground cumin, toasted
Rind of parmesan or romano cheese, or a 1-inch piece
5 ripe, but firm plum tomatoes, diced and divided in half
1 English cucumber, ends removed, cut in half, seeded & chopped
1/4 c olive oil
1/4 c sherry or balsamic vinegar
1 1/2 T Worcestershire Sauce
Sriracha to taste
Salt and Pepper to taste
Basil Chiffonade for garnish

In a dutch oven over medium heat, saute 1/2 the onion, 1/2 the bell peppers, the entire jalapeno pepper & 1/2 the garlic in 2 T olive oil 4-5 minutes. Add the cumin & oregano and continue to cook for another 2 minutes. Dump in the canned tomatoes, tomato sauce and 1/2 of the diced fresh plum tomatoes. Reduce heat to medium-low and cook, stirring occasionally, for 40 minutes. Add the parmesan rind and continue cooking for another 20 minutes. Remove from heat and remove the cheese rind.  Add olive oil, vinegar, Worcestershire, Sriracha and salt & pepper. Stir until blended.  Test for taste. Adjust condiments as needed. Do not skimp on the salt. Set aside to cool to room temperature.

In the food processor pulse the remaining onion, pepper, garlic, plum tomatoes & cucumber until small. Do not puree. Remove from bowl of processor and set aside.

Once the tomato mixture is cool, add it to the bowl of the food processor and process until desired consistency.  Remove to a bowl and add the onion, pepper & tomato mixture.  Chiffonade the basil and sprinkle on top.  Drizzle with more olive oil just before serving.  Serve with baguette slices or any crusty bread.

To create basil chiffonade, take several fresh basil leaves on layer them on top of each other.  Roll up from the long side and slice with a sharp knife from the point of the roll all the way to the opposite end. You will end up with strips of basil.

Mangia!