It had been so hot in Singapore in summer that anything hot was anathema and so I was looking for some cold soups I could make ahead of time. I wanted to make a cold Gazpacho soup, but then realised I didn’t have all the ingredients with me. So I improvised and made this soup. It was well-received, though S didn’t like it. I also realised that BB didn’t like it cold, so I heated it and he liked it then. But this can be made and served both cold and warm.

Gazpacho Inspired Tomato Corn Soup

Ingredients:

• 8-10 medium-sized red tomatoes
• 1 small cup of frozen sweet corn
• 4-5 cloves of garlic
• inch piece ginger
• 1 medium-sized onion
• 2-3 green chillies
• 2 tbsp (or more) extra virgin olive oil
• Salt to taste
• Pepper to taste

Method:

• Defrost the corn and cook it in the microwave for about 6-8 minutes, or until it becomes tender
• Chop the tomatoes and keep them aside
• Peel the garlic and the ginger and keep aside. Chop the green chillies and keep them aside.
• Peel and chop the onions and keep them aside.
• Drain the sweet corn and in a blender, blend the tomatoes, sweet corn, onion, green chillies, ginger, and garlic. Blend first into a chunky paste and then add in the olive oil and blend to a fine paste. You may add some water if you need it while blending.
• Using a strainer, strain the soup into a pan and reblend till everything is a fine paste.
• Add salt and pepper and if you want, you can pop this in the fridge and have it as a cold soup.
• If you like BB didn’t like the raw taste, add some water and boil the soup till it starts to come to a nice rolling boil and let it boil for about 5-8 minutes or until the raw taste goes away.
• Drink it hot or cold, either way, it is delicious!