Bacon Gazpacho

Welcome to week two of #BaconMonth hosted by Julie of White Lights on Wednesday. All month we are giving away cookbooks that focus on our favorite food thanks to Julie! This week a copy of Bacon 24/7 is up for grabs, and I have to say, it looks good 🙂

More about the giveaway in a few minutes, but first I want to introduce you to what happens when my garden and bacon get together. I have tons of tomatoes and cucumbers every year, so much so that I already gave a bunch away. Before I did, I decided bacon would be fabulous in gazpacho. I make gazpacho only once every year or so, because I'm the only one here who really likes it, but I know I'm not the only one in the world who likes it, and I think adding bacon to it was a "brilliant idea"! Say that in the tone of Blair from The Facts of Life. Okay, that really shows my age, anyway.....

I used a whole, unseeded jalapeno in mine, because I like it hot, but to be honest I made it too hot. It wasn't anything a little sour cream stirred into it couldn't fix, and it added a creamy touch to the gazpacho that I loved! If you want to save yourself from that, however, you can easily remove most or all of the seeds from the jalapeno before adding it to the mix, or leave it out if you really don't want it spicy. Use a just ripe, not mushy avocado for best results. They don't brown as easily and won't turn to mush in the soup.

This weeks giveaway is open to US and Canadian residents. Canadian residents will receive an amazon.com egiftcard in the amount of the book's price. Winners will be announced within 48 hours, and will have 48 hours to claim prize, must be 18+, and entries will be verifies (no "giveaway accounts").

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Bacon Gazpacho

Summer Gazpacho elevated in flavor with the addition of bacon. Perfect for hot summer days!

Prep Time30 mins

Cook Time1 hr

Total Time1 hr 30 mins

Course: Soup

Cuisine: Mexican American

Servings: 6

Calories: 360kcal

Author: Bernadette

Ingredients

• 2 ¼ pounds tomatoes ,chopped
• 12 ounces applewood smoked bacon
• 2 limes ,juiced
• 2 garlic cloves ,minced
• 1 large cucumber ,peeled and diced
• 1 avocado ,cut in half ,divided, and chopped
• ½ of a large red onion chopped
• 1 jalapeno (seeded or unseeded depending on desired heat)
• ½ cup lightly packed fresh cilantro
• 2 cups water
• 1 tablespoon bacon grease

Instructions

• Cook bacon until crispy, drain, reserving 1 tablespoon grease, set aside. Chop all vegetables and divide in half. Cut avocado in half and rub one half with a piece of lime, dice the other half. Crumble bacon.
• Add half of the chopped vegetables, half the crumbled bacon, half of the chopped avocado, lime juice, and cilantro to a food processor and process until vegetables are fine. Pour processed vegetable mixture into a mixing bowl, then add remaining vegetables, most of the bacon (reserve some for topping), and avocado. Stir in water and bacon grease, refrigerate for at least one hour. Ladle into bowl, top with bacon and diced avocado from remaining half , if desired. Serve well chilled.

Nutrition

Calories: 360kcal | Carbohydrates: 15g | Protein: 9g | Fat: 30g | Saturated Fat: 9g | Cholesterol: 39mg | Sodium: 396mg | Potassium: 788mg | Fiber: 5g | Sugar: 6g | Vitamin A: 1650IU | Vitamin C: 38.9mg | Calcium: 45mg | Iron: 1.1mg