Antonia’s Salmorejo Soup
You'll find salmorejo, a cold Spanish soup, on menus throughout Spain, but my favorite version is my mother-in-law Antonia's. I’m excited to share her recipe with you! Grab 7 simple ingredients, and you’ll be able to make a mouthwatering batch of this refreshingly creamy cold soup.
Servings: 4
Ingredients
- 8 medium plum tomatoes preferably vine-ripened
- 1 medium-sized stale baguette or other stale bread
- 1 cup good-quality extra virgin olive oil
- 1 clove garlic
- 1 splash sherry vinegar Vinagre de Jerez
- 1 pinch salt
- 2 hard boiled eggs
- diced serrano ham or other cured ham such as prosciutto
Instructions
- Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil, then cut a small cross on the bottom of each tomato. Place the tomatoes in the boiling water for 30-60 seconds, then remove them immediately and place in a bowl of ice water to cool briefly. The tomato skins should slide off easily.
- Cut out the cores of the tomatoes and add the tomatoes to a blender. Blend on high speed for about 30 seconds, or until smooth.
- Pull out the soft center of the baguette and tear it into small pieces. You should have 2-3 cups of bread pieces.
- Add 2 cups of bread pieces to the blended tomatoes, then let the mixture stand for 5 minutes. (For a thicker texture, add all of the bread pieces.)
- Add the vinegar, salt, and garlic and blend until the soup is very smooth.
- Turn the blender to medium speed, then remove the small lid on the top and slowly trickle in the oil. If your blender doesn’t have this small hole, simply stop the blender and add the oil gradually.
- Add 1 hard-boiled egg and blend until incorporated. Adjust the levels of salt, vinegar, garlic, and bread to taste.
- Chill the salmorejo until you’re ready to serve it. Serve the soup cold in small bowls, then garnish with diced hard-boiled egg and sliced ham. Enjoy!
Notes
- Since this is a cold soup, use fresh ripe tomatoes for the best results. Plum tomatoes or vine ripe tomatoes work well.
- Make sure to use the best extra virgin olive oil you can. If you want to use less olive oil than the recipe calls for, you may; add it slowly until you like the texture.
- Experiment with the amount of bread you use. Adding more bread will give the soup a texture similar to hummus. Feel free to use a gluten-free bread if desired.
- The most popular salmorejo toppings are diced hard-boiled egg and cured Spanish ham, but you can try other toppings such as avocado, good quality tuna, smoked fish, or chopped fruit like strawberries, cherries, or green apples.
