Cherry gazpacho - a perfect summer treat! (vegetarian, gluten-free, kosher)

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Cherries bring an unexpected twist to tapas classic gazpacho. Cherry gazpacho is a quick, easy and refreshing treat - perfect for lazy summer days!

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Cherries have arrived at the shops and I. Can't. Get. Enough. Of.  Them. 

Another thing I can't help is my thoughts drifting back to last summer and to the day, when I'd just schlepped back home. Armed with the first cherries of the summer I started to put together a photo which quickly became one of my all time favourites. 

And boy, am I glad it did, as that very photo turned out to be the first photo of first my book (yes, still only available in Finnish...) 

Full of excitement (and nerves) I sat down and tapped away a blog post in which I shared my big news with you all. 

Luckily there was more excitement than there were nerves as in case I had at this point had any idea just how much work would lie ahead, I would have probably paralyzed on the floor, stuffing my panic-stricken face with every single one of those cherries. 

Good job I didn't, as that day resulted in two cherry recipes for the book: this cherry gazpacho and a cherry and red wine compote I served with my no-churn, no-fuss cream cheese ice cream.

It was no mean feat for the test audience either. Their ungrateful job was to decide, which of my gazpachos would end up in the book: watermelon gazpacho or this cherry gazpacho.

In the end Cat Blogger's vote turned out to be the winning one.

"Cherry gazpacho - without a doubt. They're both delish, but this is just the right amount of... well, weird!"

My cherry gazpacho is inspired by the tapas bar streets of Malaga, where Dani Garcia's, one of the region's most renowed chefs' version has garnered a veritable cult following. 

So, in case you find yourself lost and hungry in Malaga, make sure to head over to his restaurant KGB!

As a tapas this serves 4, as a shot up to 12

Gazpacho de cerezas – cherry gazpacho:

500 g pitted cherries (appr. 700 g unpitted ones)

1 tomato

½ red bell pepper

½ red onion

½ jalapeño

1 dl olive oil

1 tbsp red wine vinegar (or sherry vinegar)

1 tsp salt

To serve: crispy, roasted Serrano ham crisps and/or crumbled Feta cheese

Halve the tomato and remove the hard core.Do the same with the pepper. 

Measure the ingredients into a blender/ food processor and whizz until smooth. For the silkiest, smoothest finish, run the gazpacho through a sieve.

Chill for at least a couple of hours before serving (as this will also let the flavours develop).

Check the taste, add more salt and/ or vinegar if needed and serve. Ahhhhh.

And now over to you! What are your favourite gazpachos? 

The traditional take? Ajo Blanco; the white gazpacho? Cooling cucumber version? My fruity watermelon variety? 

Or hey - would you like to share your own recipe (please do!)

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Lahmacun - Turkish pizza (kosher, gluten-free)

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Lahmacun is Turkish pizza and transports taste buds instantly to Istanbul. Ahhhh!

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Let's say it out loud: Turkey is quite a shit country. No, no point arguing: it is. 

Just think about it: no-one other than Erdogan could possibly think that persecution of the Kurds, rampant violence towards women and honour killings somehow make up for the obvious deficiencies in the society such as lack of viable democracy and absence of human rights. Though, genocide-deniers such as him rarely make the merriest of the bunch. 

Incredible Istanbul, however, has for long been one of my favourite cities in the world. 

But the warmest memories I have of my Tour of Turkey some years back are, without a doubt, food-related (hardly surprising, eh?). One of my biggest favourites were lahmacuns, bought from a stall for a mere euro on one of the narrow alleyways surrounding The Grand Bazaar

No wonder I fell for it- it is, after all, member of the pizza family; the corner stone of my diet.

The dish combines meat (lahm) and dough (ajin) and is, depending on the region, also known as either Turkish or Armenian pizza. And unlike Turkish policies, this one is an easy one to fall in love with. 

Since discovering it, I've never missed a chance to get re-acquainted. If a trip to Turkey doesn't tempt you, you'll find good ones in London as well.

Both the base and the topping layer are thin - the crust does not need to be puffy as in a pizza and the toppings should not overflow either. 

Instead of lamb you could also use minced beef and, if in a hurry, you could substitute the base with soft wheat tortillas or flat breads, too. 

You could also bake the dough into mini-sized lahmacuns - perfect for parties and picnics. In that case the recipe yields 24-28 lahmacuns. 

Traditionally lahmacun is served with lemon wedges, fresh herbs and simple tomato and cucumber salad (such as my Israeli salad!).

Makes six

Lahmacun - Turkish pizza:

Base:

3 3/4 tsp dry yeast

2 1/4 tsp sugar

2 1/4 dl warm water

2 1/4 tbsp oil

5-6 dl flour (00- grade if possible, gluten-free if needed)

3/4 tsp salt

Topping:

400 g ground lamb (or beef) 
1 (large)onion
2 large garlic cloves, finely chopped
1 large (beefsteak) tomato or 2 smaller ones
1 large green pepper
1 1/2 dl finely chopped parsley
3/4 dl finely chopped mint
2 tbsp tomato concentrate
3/4 tsp ground cumin
3/4 tsp ground coriander
3/4 tsp paprika
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
3/4 tsp salt
3/4 tsp black pepper

also: red chilli flakes

to serve: remaining herbs, lemon wedges

Combine dry yeast, water and sugar and leave aside, covered for 5 minutes while the yeast activates. 

Then add oil, flour (and along with the last dl of flour) salt. Knead into a smooth dough. Brush with a little oil, cover with cling film and leave to double in size in a warm place for an hour. In the meanwhile prep the topping.

Pre-heat the oven to 250ºc  at this point, too, (in a fan assisted oven 230 should do). If you have a pizza stone, leave in in the oven. If not, then do the same with the tray.

Finely chop/ frate the onion. You can do this in a food processor, too, but in that case drain most of the liquid.

Cut the tomato in half, remove the hard core and chop very finely. Do the same with pepper, too. 

Combine all the ingredients (except for the chilli flakes) and work into a smooth mixture. Chill in the fridge until the dough is ready. 

Turn the dough out onto work surface, knead and divide into 6 (there shouldn't be any need for more flour) and roll into thin discs. It's easiest to do this on a parchment, which in turn makes it easy to flip them over onto the hot tray. 

Spoon a couple of tablespoons of the topping onto the base and pat into a smooth, even layer. Sprinkle chilli flakes on top and bake for 7-8 minutes until the meat is done and the edges start to get soe colour. 

In case you want your lahmacuns to stay soft, cover them with parchment and then top with a tea towel.

Serve with the remaining herbs and drizzle with lemon juice. 

PS. in case lahmacun is up your alley, you shouldn't forget another Turkish take on pizza: pide!

Onko teillä ollut jo mahdollisuus maistaa lahmacunia? Veikö se teidänkin sydämenne?

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Lyutenitsa - Bulgarian pepper, eggplant and tomato relish (gluten-free, vegan, kosher)

Lyutenitsa is Bulgaria's favourite treat. Not only is this pepper, eggplant and tomato relish versatile, it's also gluten-free, kosher and vegan!

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In addition to local specialties such as patatnik, Bulgaria is home to traditional dishes equally lovedall over the country, such as Bob Chorba, Bulgarian bean soup. The ultimate, hands down,all round-winner of this race would, however, have to be luytenitsa, a bulgarian spread/ relish made of roasted peppers, tomatos and eggplant.  You'll find it served as a starter, spooned over a splice of bread for a snack and accompanying meat or chicken. 

Towards the end of each summer Bulgarian homes still witness massive operations during which endless and endless jars of this are being prepared to see people through the winter.

While not technically demanding, it does take a bit of time, which is why people tend to make luytenitsa in bigger batches. I swear I kid you not when I tell you I've seen recipes that start with 15 kilos of peppers. Kid you not. True story.

In my tiny kitchen that would have turned out to be the end of not just all the storage space, also yours truly's psychological well-being, so here's a smaller recipe that yields about 6 dl of lyutenitsa. 

Lyut means spicy in Bulgarian,but that it really isn't. There are, of course, as many variations as there are cooks. Traditionally lyutenitsa contains (roasted) bell peppers, eggplant, tomato, onion and garlic, but the Macedonian version even has some carrots in it.

As the industrial manufacturing of lyutenitsa started in the 1950's, it was only allowed to contain pepper and tomato paste, onion, salt, sugar and oil. But, let's face it- that recipe is hardly the only thing that Bulgaria of the time got wrong. Eggplant for one lends the relish such sweet richness you'd be fool to forgo that. 

Luytenitsa has relatives all over the Balkans: you too might have heard of ajvar? Readers of this blog are, of course,  also familiar with some of its more distant cousins: Syrian muhammara and Spanish romesco. 

Lyutenitsa - Bulgarian pepper, eggplant and tomato relish:

1 large eggplant(450 gr)
4 large peppers (I used 2 red ones and 2 yellow ones), total weight 1 kg
1/2 kg tomatos
2 cloves ofgarlic, finely chopped
1 onion, finely chopped
1/2 - 1 large red chilli, finely chopped
1/2 dl oil
3/4 tsp cumin
1 tsp salt
1 tsp black pepper

Prick the eggplant with a tooth pick. Place on a tray lined with tin foil and roast under the broiler for half an hour or so. Then add halved peppers and continue roasting for another 20 minutes or so, until the peppers' skins start to blacken and bubble. Remove from the oven, cover and leave to cool until cool enough to handle. 

Pull the peppers' skin off. Half the eggplant and spoon the insides into a food processor with the peppers. Blizz into a puré (doesn't have to be entirely smooth).

Blanch the tomatos by cutting a cross-like incision into the hard stem and then dropping them into a pot of boiling water for a couple of minutes. Lift out of the water using a slotted spoon and leave to cool. Pull the skin off, halve, remove the hard bit and chope finely (with seeds and all).

Measure pepper and eggplant pure, chilli, onion, garlic and chopped-up tomatos into a pot and let simmer over medium heat, until liquid has almost entirely evaporated and the mixture has thickened (40-50 minutes).

Add oil, cumin, salt and pepper. Continue cooking for another 5 minutes. Check the taste and season as needed (by adding either more salt, pepper and/ or sugar).

Let cool and place in jars. Lyutenitsa keeps in the fridge for 2-3 days. It can also be frozen. 

If you're making bigger batch, you could also preserve it by sterilizing the jars. This way it keeps for upto a year.

Sterilizing the lyutenitsa:

Spoon the lyutenitsa into small jars all the way to the top (oxygen is the enemy of any storing processs, remember!) and screw on the tops. Place the jars into a big pot and cover with water so it covers them by about 5 cms. 

Boil the jars (start counting from the moment water reaches boiling point) for 25 minutes. Carefully remove the jars from the water and make sure the centre of the top has snapped down on each one of the jars.

You ever heard of lyutenitsa? Of have you managed to try some of the other local delicacies such as patatnik or Bob Chorba?

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Watermelon gazpacho

Refreshing gazpacho offers a cooling breeze - this summer's hottest version is made with watermelon!

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I'm the first to admit it: I'm pathetically crap at eating fruit and veg. Unless they're deep-fried, that is. Or wrapped in bacon. Which, especially with fruit just doesn't happen often enough.

The hotel breakfasts at our travels serve a regular reminder of this. As the Cat Blogger is busy filling her plate with everything that's fresh and green I stand in the queue for my third top-up of bacon. But let's face it: all that green stuff just fails to evoke the sort of passions and uncontrollable cravings that, say, pizza does. Or the aforementioned bacon. 

No-one is ready to chew their own arm off to get carrots. No person walks home from the bar at 4am with cauliflower in their hand. No shop on Saturday mornings is inundated with people desperate for tomatos. Am I right or are you wrong?

There is one exception to this, though. Watermelon. I just can't get enough of that one and in the summer it's something I legitimately do crave. To a point it hasn't even occurred to me to out bacon in it. Yes, I just said that. 

During the last weeks Finland has bathed in such sunshine it's been difficult to remember this is Finland. Which is great, seeing how I'll be far too busy to do any travelling. And heat like this cries out for something cooling, such as gazpacho.

Previously I've shared with you recipe for the traditional, tomato-based one, cucumber version, its Andalusian cousin salmorejo and the white version called ajo blanco. This summer's hottest ticket though is this: watermelon gazpacho. Quite possibly the best of the lot. 

Oh, and if you want to go the extra mile, roastng/ grilling the ingredients adds a new dimension to this (and other gazpachos)!

Serves 4, as a shot-sized portion 12

Watermelon gazpacho:

1 kg watermelon cubes (approximately 1 mini watermelon)

2 tomatos

1/2 red pepper

1/2 small red onion

1/2 cucumber

1 jalapeño

3/4 dl oil

2 tbsp red wine vinegar (or sherry vinegar)

1,5 tsp salt

large bunch of coriander (reserve a little for serving)

to serve: oil, coriander leaves, remaining veggies finely chopped

Dice the veggies and finely chop the remaining veggies for serving. Place all the ingredients in a blender and whizz until smooth. Let cool in the fridge for a couple of hours or even until the following day. 

Check the taste before serving and adjust adding more salt and/ or vinegar. Drizzle oil on top and serve with the chopped up veg and coriander.

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Comfort food from the Baltics - pork, pepper and paprika stew and Undurraga T.H. Carménère

I've totally fallen for Eastern European cuisines of late. They are exactly the kind of hearty, robust, soul-nurturing comfort food that I've been desperately needing recently. One thing that combines those countries with my old love Spain is their love of pork. And what a mighty animal that is!

On this side of the screen I'm already getting ready for the porky orgies that my up and coming trip to Andalusia will inevitably be, but before that, let's go live with this pork and pepper stew that we had for Sunday lunch a couple of weeks ago, inspired by the most recent trip to Latvia. Best comfort foods are usually results of hours of loving stewing and simmering, but this bad boy is in your table in half an hour. Serve it with potatos mashed with browned butter (this is not the time to skimp on that butter!) and hello world - aren't you looking better already!

Just like that puff pastry lattice covered chicken pot pie, this, too, evoked some deep sighs around the table and with them the best compliment food can get: "this tastes just like something my grandmother would make".

Serves four

Pork, pepper and paprika stew:

3 large red peppers

400 g pork strips

1 large onion, thinly sliced

4 garlic cloves, finely chopped

1 tsp pimentón

1 tbsp tomato concentrate

1 tub (120 g) sour cream

1 tbsp pickle juice from gherkins

salt, black pepper

3/4 dl gherkins, chopped to 1/2 cm cubes

handful of basil leaves, chopped

a couple of tbsp oil for frying

Cut the peppers in half and grill under the broiler at 275° until the skin is black and blistering. Place them in a plastic bag until cool enough to handle. Remove the skin, purée two of them and cut the third one in strips. 

Heat some oil in a casserole. Sear the pork on all sides and transfer aside. Add a little bit more oil and sauté the onion and garlic until the onion is translucent. Then add pimentón and tomato concentrate. Continue to cook for a couple of more minutes.

Add puréed pepper, pickle juice and sour cream. Simmer, covered for half an hour. Then add the remaining papper strips, gherkin cubes and basil leaves. Check the taste and season. 

The toasty sweetness of roasted peppers is something that Carménère grape compliments. S, for this lunch we opened a bottle of T.H. Carménère by the same Chilean producer that made the Carménère I paired my lamb dhansak with. 

As the name suggests (Terroir Hunter), the grapes have been sourced from the best vineyards and for instance this wine they only made 1050 boxes of. 

Much like the previously seen colleague, in addition to notes of pepper this also boasts berry notes, which make this medium-bodied wine very easy-drinking and easy to pair with a variety of dishes. Anything with (roasted) peppers, stews, pork and BBQ. It's got smooth tannins which make this wine's overall appearance even rounder and as a result I would recommend pairing it with spicier meat dishes, sausages and charcuterie, too.

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Ham and pasta salad

The star of Finnish Christmas table is ham. A big ass ham. As a result, by now everyone's so sick of it they'll not want to see one for another year. But in case you're still left with some, this retro salad is a fine way of recycling it into good use. And a cheap and cheerful dish for parties and buffets. And picnics - we're only half a year away from summer!

In my childhood we never had issues with leftover ham: though I'm not much of a ham-eater (unless it comes from a black-hoofed Spaniard, of course...) my consumption during Christmas time got legendarily out of control. By Christmas Day my poor Dad had to cook another one as the first one had mysteriously disappeared into the bottomless stomach of his first-born...

And sure, after the non-stop food orgies that are Christmas you could substitute some of the mayonnaise in the dressing with say, Turkish yogurt, too. 

Serves 4-6, as a part of a buffet up to 10 people

Ham and pasta salad:

200 g pasta (gluten-free if needed)

350 g ham, diced to 1 cm cubes

1 red pepper, diced to 1 cm cubes

200 g peas

200 g corn

Dressing:

2,5 dl mayonnaise

2 tbsp mustard (sweeter variety)

1 bunch chives

1,5 tsp granulated garlic 

salt, pepper to taste

Conbine the ingredients for dressing. Cook pasta according to instructions on the packet. Drain and rinse with cold water. Combine with rest of the ingredients and fold in the dressing. Check the taste and season as needed. Serve. 

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Salat Turki (Turkish salad) - souvenir from Israel

After only weeks of travelling my life skills clearly continue their much-needed holiday. Waking up in the pitch-black morning is next to impossible. The sheer amount of keys I must remember to take with me as I leave for work is insane. My brain capacity is stretched to the limit trying to keep up with all the usernames and passwords and codes I need just to get through the day (and back home...). 

But after the shameless eating out-spree of the past weeks the most horrendous culture shock is realizing I have to make my own food. I can sit at the kitchen table, asking to see the wine menu all night long and still nothing happens. Shocking. 

An Israeli specialty is their salad selection. Which has absolutely nothing to do with how we perceive salads. Israeli salad is not just a particular dish, it's an institution. It's a mind-boggling array of pita bread, dips, pickles and fresh veggies paired with fresh herbs. And they keep topping them up as you go along. On its own the fiesta will set you back about 50 NIS ((about €10), but as a starter that's half the price. Good luck finding any room in your stomach for that main course, though...!

One of my absolute all-time faves is salat turki, Turkish salad. It's a piquant red pepper and tomato salad and the bowl containing that is always the first one to run out. It's quick, easy, suitable for all diets and more versatile than a little black dress. Serve it as a dip, use in sandwiches, serve with fish, chicken or meat... It's best the day after after the flavours have married and settled down.

As part of a meze feast this serves 3-4

Salat turki - Turkish salad

4 tbsp oil

1 large onion (or 2 small ones), finely chopped

3 garlic cloves, finely chopped

1 red pepper, in 1 cm cubes

4 largeish tomatos, blanched, peeled and in 1 cm cubes

2 tsp cumin

1,5 tbsp harissa paste

70 g tin tomato concentrate

1,5 tsp sugar

1 tsp salt

1 tsp black pepper

2 tbsp finely chopped fresh parsley

the juice of 1/2 lemon

Sauté onion, garlic and pepper in oil over gentle heat, covered,  until onion is translucent and pepper is soft. Don't let them get any colour.

Stir in tomato cubes, harissa paste, tomato concentrate, cumin, sugar, salt and pepper. Continue cooking for another 15 minutes, stirring every now and then. The mixture will thicken as the liquid evaporates. Leave it slightly runny though as it sets as it cools. 

Remove from the heat and fold in fresh herbs and lemon juice. Leave to cool, check the taste and adjust by adding sugar or salt if needed. Serve.

PS. Looking for a recipe for home-made pita bread? Here you go!

The herbiness, gentle heat and the lemony acidity would all be at home with something on the mellow side, such as Alsatian Riesling or Gewürtztraminer (a warmer climate Riesling would work, too!), but the sunshine of my weeks in Israel got me thinking Andalusian sun and with that, Albariño which I fell in love with while there. 

Alvarinho Vinho Verde is Portugal's equivalent of it and this one is a fine specimen. It's got body that can take on a bit of heat, too. It's dry, mineral and acidic with ripe citrusy notes, so it's a great wine for veggie salads, (white) fish and seafood.

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