For the summertime: A cold Gazpacho with lukewarm king prawns

Ingredients

• 2 king prawns for every guest, to be cut into 8 - 12 pieces
• 1 kg fully matured organic tomatoes
• 2 courgettes
• 2 shallots
• 1 - 2 cloves of garlic
• 3 hulls of pepper (red, yellow and green)
• 250 ml good tomato juice
• 200 ml stock of beef or vegetables
• 2 tablespoon Balsamic vinegar
• 1 red hull of chilli
• 2 - 3 tablespoons of native olive oil
• Tabasco optional
• A little parsley, minced
• Seasoning (sea salt and fresh ground pepper)

Preparation

The Gazpacho:

1. Brush and wash the vegetables and cut them into fairly big pieces.
2. (For the filler I cut the peppers, tomatoes and courgettes in small chunks)
3. Peel the shallots and the garlic.
4. Open the hull of chilli, remove all the seeds and chop it into small pieces.
5. Add it all into a blender (You might consider using a hand blender)
6. Blend with tomato juice, stock, Balsamic vinegar, oil and seasoning.
7. Taste and allow to cool.

The king prawns:

1. Peel and de-vein the prawns.
2. Season them with garlic, salt and pepper.
3. Fry them on both sides for 1-2 each till they start to turn pink. (Take care when frying to keep the prawns tender)
4. Take the pan from the oven as soon as possible.
5. Allow to rest in the remaining heat.

Serving suggestion

• Serve the Gazpacho in pre-cooled dishes with the chopped vegetables.
• Alongside offer the warm king prawns with optional small toasted garlic bread.