Hard nights, helicopters, haute cabriere and healthy Gazpacho

If you don't mind I am going to continue with the morbidity of the last post another time. Today is a beautiful sunny day and I have had the most successful week of my career. I am in my flat which looks beyond beautiful (I say this as I type and look out my window onto my replanted garden) and the afternoon sun is dappled on the grass. It's Friday and all is good with the world.

This week has been a media frenzy, rushing between 702, Classic FM, Financial Mail, SABC and others has rendered me useless today. I managed to catch up with some contacts at SAFM yesterday at The Saxon for breakfast, what an incredible setting, truly. We dined on oysters for breakfast (unlimited) spoke about the perils of being single in your 30's and seafood markets in France. It was truly lovely, needless to say the rest of the day was a bit if a struggle. Oh, by the way, if you find yourself coming across Belon oysters in a restaurant, please, please do yourself a favour and order a half dozen. They are velvety, meaty and huge. I would even go so far as to say that I prefer them to Luderitz oysters.

Now a quick shout out for some restaurants. A journalist contact of mine from the Financial Mail lives in Franschhoek and his brother is the chef patron of a restaurant in the Haute Cabriere valley (http://www.hautecabriere.com/Chef.htmrestaurant) and of another called The Grill Room in Franchhoek (http://www.franschhoek.org.za/eat/view/726). I have been invited to spend the day eating and drinking and flying in helicopters when next I am in the Fairest Cape. Thank you, Greg and I hope you are not critiquing my writing too hard, it is all done off the cuff. Not to mention on a mild hangover today.

Anyhow as summer descends on us at a rapid pace, I thought it only fair and right that I had a braai / BBQ this weekend. I went and bought one today. It so happens I looked at this 'thing' and realised I know NOTHING about braaing or braai culture. Lord help me it looks like an alien in my garden, I hope to pick up some handy hints and tips tomorrow because although I may know a fair amount about cooking, this business of the braai has me stumped.

I will be serving gazpacho to the masses tomorrow evening as it is the perfect summer soup, not to mention healthy, filling and so easy to make it. Always delivering on the WOW factor, gazpacho is the closest thing to heaven if made correctly. It is a fine balance of fragrance, garlic and refreshing vegetables and you can get creative with herb and vegetable variants should you so wish to. Right, here goes . . . I hope to get this right after a rather hard night last night.

Just so you know, gazpacho is traditionally made with bread. I don't make mine this way but it does do wonders for the consistency. Should you want to put bread in yours, add 250 grams of homemade bread crumbs into the mix.

Gazpacho (serves 6-8)

Ingredients:

500 grams of tomatoes
2 large peeled cucumbers
1 large red onion
2 red peppers
2 green peppers
4 large garlic cloves
1 large handful of chopped coriander (optional)
7 tablespoons of good quality extra virgin olive oil
4 tablespoons of good quality balsamic vinegar
Salt and pepper to taste

Method:
Skin your tomatoes by placing them in a pot and pouring boiling hot water over them. Leave them for 5 minutes and then place them in a sink filled with ice water and peel with with your hands. Chop them roughly and place in a bowl

Chop your peppers roughly and place in the the same bowl. Ditto the cucumbers

Chop your onion fairly finely and add to the bowl

Mash your garlic cloves and coriander with a pestle and mortar (if you don't have one, just chop the garlic and the coriander as finely as you can) and add to the same bowl

Add olive oil and vinegar to the bowl and mix it all up well

Put your mixture into the blender and blend well and voila, all done. It is that simple. Some people like to strain the soup to rid it of bits, but I like mine rustic, it really is a personal thing.

Serve with croutons and a chilled glass of white wine. Not that I can even contemplate alcohol today. Over and out.