SWEET-TART SUN GOLD TOMATO SOUP WITH AVOCADO RELISH

Long before we had Sun Gold tomatoes and the plethora of heirlooms and sun-ripened tomatoes that can now be bought or grown and picked at home, I published a different chilled tomato soup in my second book, The Savory Way. It was based on a can of chilled tomato juice, probably the best possibility at that time. Actually, it is quite good with the avocado, lime, and sour cream, and if you don’t have access to any good tomatoes, you might consider using canned (preferably organic) tomato juice. It’s of course, super-fast. The tiny supersweet Sun Gold tomatoes have been appearing at the market for at least the past fifteen years, but people are still over the moon about them. Is it their sweetness? Their cuteness? The fact that you buy these orange-gold spheres tucked in bright green pint baskets? It could be all of the above, but I suspect that it’s mostly their sweetness that people like. “They are like candy!” shoppers say. I like them too, and always grow them, although I find that their sweetness can be a bit overwhelming, which is why there is vinegar in this soup. I first had Sun Gold tomatoes in a chilled soup at Casa Blanca restaurant in Cambridge, Massachusetts, where Anna Sortun was cooking before she opened her own restaurant. She tempered their sweetness with a bit of Chardonnay vinegar, making, in effect, a sweet-tart soup. I further soften the flavors by including a fine dice of avocado, but today I don’t always include the serrano chile that I did originally. It’s just somehow too much. You don’t need a lot of this soup—it’s intense. Less than a half-cup is enough for a stimulating, eye-opening start to a summer meal on a hot day. You might decide to amplify it, however, by including a few spoonfuls of cooked black quinoa, black rice, or smoky freekeh.

Great

% Daily Values based on a 2,000 calorie diet

Step 1

Pluck and discard the stems from the tomatoes and then rinse them. Put them in a heavy saucepan with a tight-fitting lid with half of the shallots, ½ teaspoon of salt, and 1 cup of water. Cook over medium-high heat, keeping one ear inclined to the pot. Once you hear the tomatoes popping, take a peek to make sure there’s sufficient moisture in the pan so the tomatoes don’t scorch. If the skins are slow to pop and give up the tomato juice, add a few extra tablespoons of water as a precaution. Once the tomatoes release their juices, lower the heat and cook gently for 25 minutes.

Step 2

Run the tomatoes through a food mill. You’ll have about 2 cups of thick purée. Chill well, then taste for salt.

Step 3

Just before serving, combine the remaining shallots in a bowl with the vinegar, avocado, olive oil, and herbs. Season with a pinch or two of salt and some pepper. Spoon the soup into small cups or bowls, divide the shallot-avocado mixture among them, and serve.