* * * * *
Cookbook Author Rozanne Gold on her Rozanne Gold blog on my Gazpacho a la Sevillana
To my way of thinking, gazpacho is always lipstick red (chock full of
the ripest tomatoes), jade green (Asian-style), or even bluish-purple
(my playful take on a fruit soup made with blueberries and ginger.)
These can all be found in Radically Simple
and they are a fabulous prelude to an end-of-summer meal. But true
gazpacho, according to Spanish food-and-wine maven, Gerry Dawes, has a
kind of orange-red-coral hue. Offered with a "lazy Susan" of garnishes
-- fresh chopped tomatoes, red and green peppers, cucumbers, onion (or
scallions -- not authentic), chopped egg, warm croutons, the base of the
soup is rather smooth and made textural with these colorful add-ons.
Today, in Spain, says Gerry, "it has become a trend to add chopped
Iberico ham" to the hit parade of toppings.
Over the Labor Day weekend
we enjoyed the fruits of Gerry's labor, as he showed us
step-by-step how to make gazpacho, then regaled us with an authentic
paella laden with shrimp, squid, two kinds of chorizo, rice awash in
homemade fish stock, peas, and peppers -- all cooked in a huge paella
pan set atop an outdoor grill. The goal (and trick) is to get the
bottom of the rice to form a nice caramelized crust (socarrat), that is
both desirable and delicious. Gerry did.
You should see him in the
kitchen: the culinary equivalent of a matador.
Gerry Dawes was deemed by the late James Michener, to be the rightful heir to scribe the sequel to Michener's Iberia.
Known by many to be one of the leading experts on Spain's gastronomic
scene -- both past and present -- he is the recipient of Spain's
prestigious Premio Nacional de Gastronomia (National Gastronomy
Award) in 2003 and is a familiar figure on Spain's restaurant circuit.
But as food and wine is part of history and culture, Gerry's vast
knowledge of Spain, and his beautiful writing style earned him that
opportunity by Michener himself.
Gerry, however, is so busy entertaining friends, making gazpacho, and bringing famous chefs to
Spain, that the reality of his novel still awaits. Gerry has lived
on-and-off in Spain for 30 years and his travel notebooks alone are
worth stealing. He was the first American journalist to write about
Catalan star chef, Ferran Adria for FoodArts (they are now good
friends). According to Michael Batterberry, FoodArt's late beloved
publisher and editor, "...That we were the first to introduce American
readers to Ferran Adria in 1997 and have ever since continued to bring
you a blow-by-blow narrative of Spain's riveting ferment is chiefly due
to our Spanish correspondent, Gerry "Mr. Spain" Dawes, the messianic
wine and food journalist raised in Southern Illinois and possessor of a
self-accumulated doctorate in the Spanish Table." Whew. I couldn't
have said it better.
So, it was Mr. Spain last
weekend, who finally taught me the gospel-of-gazpacho. No hot spices
(the heat come from the garlic), the proper texture, the requisite
color, and the most fabulous taste. I took notes and you will find my
approximation below. His is the Gazpacho a la Sevilliana -- taught to
him by his "Spanish mother" Maria Franco, the proprietress of Pension
Santa Cruz located in the old Jewish quarter of Seville. In the old
days, it cost $1.00 a night and an extra .15 cents for a hot shower.
Gerry differentiated his Sevillana gazpacho from the more brick-colored,
thicker, sauce-like salmorejo gazpachos of Córdoba, which are often served with strips of fried eggplant.
If you are ever planning a trip to Spain, you might want to hire
Gerry to write your itinerary and fix-you-up with some of Spain's
greatest chefs and restaurants, or follow Gerry Dawes's Spain: An
Insider's Guide to Spanish Food, Wine, Culture and Travel, on his
generous blog. His photography is also award-winning. www.gerrydawesspain.com
Gerry's Gazpacho
Gerry says the base of gazpacho is primal -- water, vinegar, garlic and bread.
5 very large ripe tomatoes, cut into wedges
1-1/2 large cucumbers, peeled, seeded and chopped
1/4 cup vinegar (Gerry used 2 tablespoons white wine vinegar, 1 tablespoon sherry vinegar, and 1 tablespoon red wine vinegar)
4 ounces soft baguette, soaked in a bowl of 2 cups water for 20 minutes
1 cup chopped red peppers
1 cup chopped green peppers
1 cup chopped orange peppers
2 large cloves garlic
1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
Process everything in the food processor until smooth, including the
water from the soaking bread. Strain into a large bowl. Process the
remaining solids until very smooth and add to soup. Chill until very
cold. Add salt to taste. Garnish with remaining cucumber, chopped,
chopped tomatoes, chopped peppers, chopped egg, chopped onion, and warm
croutons. Serves 6 to 8
_____________________________________________________
Gerry Dawes is the Producer and Program Host of Gerry Dawes & Friends, a weekly radio progam on WPWL 103.7 FM Pawling Public Radio in Pawling, New York.
Dawes was awarded Spain's prestigious Premio Nacional de Gastronomía (National Gastronomy Award) in 2003. He writes and speaks frequently on Spanish wine and gastronomy and leads gastronomy, wine and cultural tours to Spain. He was a finalist for the 2001 James Beard Foundation's Journalism Award for Best Magazine Writing on Wine, won The Cava Institute's First Prize for Journalism for his article on cava in 2004, was awarded the CineGourLand “Cinéfilos y Gourmets” (Cinephiles & Gourmets) prize in 2009 in Getxo (Vizcaya) and received the 2009 Association of Food Journalists Second Prize for Best Food Feature in a Magazine for his Food Arts article, a retrospective piece about Catalan star chef, Ferran Adrià.
In December, 2009, Dawes was awarded the Food Arts Silver Spoon Award in a profile written by José Andrés.
". . .That we were the first to introduce American readers to Ferran Adrià in 1997 and have ever since continued to bring you a blow-by-blow narrative of Spain's riveting ferment is chiefly due to our Spanish correspondent, Gerry "Mr. Spain" Dawes, the messianic wine and food journalist raised in Southern Illinois and possessor of a self-accumulated doctorate in the Spanish table. Gerry once again brings us up to the very minute. . ." - - Michael & Ariane Batterberry, Editor-in-Chief/Publisher and Founding Editor/Publisher, Food Arts, October 2009.
Pilot for a reality television series
on wine, gastronomy, culture and travel in Spain.
Experience Spain With Gerry Dawes: Customized Culinary, Wine & Cultural Trips to Spain & Travel Consulting on Spain
Gerry Dawes can be reached at gerrydawes@gmail.com; Alternate e-mail (use only if your e-mail to AOL is rejected): gerrydawes@spanishartisanwine.com
Gerry Dawes can be reached at gerrydawes@gmail.com; Alternate e-mail (use only if your e-mail to AOL is rejected): gerrydawes@spanishartisanwine.com
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