Recipe for mango gazpacho soup with shrimp and avocado
What do you do when you can't resist buying the giant jug of mango-peach salsa at Costco? Make soup, of course! Homemade salsa with summer fruits, tropical fruit salsa -- any fruit-and-tomato based salsa will work. Bread and garlic do the thickening, just as in a classic gazpacho. Including the time it took to poach the shrimp, this soup came together in less than 10 minutes. And in the middle of New England winter, when local fruit is nonexistent, the taste is pure summer delight.
Mango gazpacho soup with shrimp and avocado
Without the shrimp, it's vegetarian/vegan friendly. Serves 2; can be doubled, tripled or more.
Ingredients
2 cups fruit-and-tomato salsa
1/2 cup water
1 slice bread (anything you have on hand; I use whole wheat or country white), torn into pieces
1 clove garlic, peeled and smashed
1 tsp balsamic or red wine vinegar
Fresh black pepper, to taste
6 large uncooked frozen shrimp in their shells, whatever size you like (do not defrost)
1 avocado, peeled and diced
Directions
In a blender (or in a large bowl, with an immersion blender), puree the salsa with 1/2 cup of water until smooth. Add the bread and garlic, and blend until smooth. Taste, then add 1 teaspoon of balsamic or red wine vinegar, or more as needed, to balance the sweetness of the salsa. Season with fresh black pepper. Pour soup into a serving bowl.
[To make ahead, chill the soup base in a container in the refrigerator, and add the shrimp and avocado right before serving.]
In a small sauce pan, place the frozen shrimp and 2 inches of water. Set on medium-high heat. When the shrimp turn pick and are just curled (this should take 2 minutes or so, not much more), remove from heat, drain and rinse under cold water to stop the cooking. Peel the shrimp and add to the soup.
Peel and dice the avocado, and sprinkle over the soup just before serving.
While I couldn't imagine 'drinking' salsa at first, I realize it's just the base and the water and bread tone it down. I certainly love all the ingredients individually. Why not as a gazpacho? Very creative, Lydia.
The colors are brilliant. What a work of art! You are like Andy Warhol, without the can!
What a beautiful trivet!
This sounds just delicious!
This looks and sounds delicious! (Ted, isn't that a Rupert trivet?)
Joan, up here in Rhode Island, at this time of year we don't have either tomatoes or stone fruits that are local. I've used salsa in soup before, but never as the base. It's incredibly delicious!
TW, I'm a fan of Warhol's work, so this is a great compliment.
Ted, yes it is. Wish I had more of them.
Kalyn, truly delicious, and very low-fat too.
Lucia, your homemade salsa got me started on using salsa in soup. This one is the extension of our favorite black bean and peach salsa soup. (and yes, it's a Rupert trivet...)
This caught my eye, mostly because of the shrimp & avocado (mmm, love shrimp & avocado), but also because of the mango. For the first time, I made Mango-Lime Jam today and was pleasantly surprised by its citrusy-tropical flavor. Then I find this recipe, and I'm thinking, "What a neat use of mango-peach salsa!" I particularly like that you can use other fruit/tomato salsa combinations as well---the sky is the limit!
Hi Lydia,
Nice blog. Enjoyed browsing. Just a comment, maybe it landed here by mistake, but you got a soup with shrimp in the veggie/vegan category.
Thanks