Roasted Tomato Gazpacho with Basil Oil and Salsa

Serves 10 bowls

Ingredients

• Verjuice (to be prepared 2 ½ months in advance)
• 10 pounds fresh red or white grapes – (5000grams)
• ½ teaspoon dry yeast – (2.5ml)
• 3 tablespoons warm water – (45ml)
• ¼ cup honey – (60ml)
• Bandy

Gazpacho

• 3kg vine ripened tomatoes, halved and seeded
• 8 cloves of garlic, unpeeled
• 1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil – (75ml)
• 2 cups verjuice – (500ml)
• Olive oil coated small sourdough cubes (1 loafs worth) roasted until golden

Salsa

• 1 English cucumber, finely chopped
• 1 white onion, finely chopped
• 1 small red pepper, finely chopped
• 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar – (15ml)

Basil Oil

• 3 cups firmly packed basil leaves – (750ml)
• 1 ¼ cups olive oil – (310ml)

Directions

1. Verjuice To make the verjuice, dissolve the yeast in the warm water.  Melt the honey in a small saucepan and set it aside to cool.
2. Using your hands, stem and crush the grapes.  Smash grapes with your hands.  Add the dissolved yeast mixture and cooled honey to the grapes. Mix well.
3. Cover the mixture cheesecloth and let it sit at room temperature for 7 days while it bubbles and ferments. The cheesecloth will help keep the fruit flies away. Push the grape skins down into the juice once a day.
4. After it has rested for the week, strain the liquid into a container.  Add brandy to taste. Store for a minimum of 2 months in a cool dark place.  Sediment will fall to the bottom.  The clear verjuice can be bottled, well sealed and kept in the refrigerator or freezer.   Preheat the oven to 200 ?C
5. Gazpacho: Place seeded tomato halves in a baking pan with garlic and drizzle with oil and bake for 1 hour and let them cool.
6. Place the tomatoes, garlic and all the roasting juices in a blender and mix until smooth.  Place the soup in a bowl. Add verjuice, season with salt and pepper and chill for 6-24 hours.
7. Salsa: For salsa combine cucumber, onion, chili, and balsamic vinegar to a bowl and mix well.
8. Basil Oil Add basil to blender to mix, releasing the essential oils and add olive oil in a slow and steady stream. Strain the mixture into a bowl and pour into a squeezable bottle.
9. Plate Gazpacho Remove soup from fridge and ladle into a bowl. Top with salsa and croutons and drizzle with basil oil.
10. Serve and enjoy!