CHEF JEFF — ONE BYTE AT A TIME: Spicy BLT Soup

Put garden-ripe tomatoes to use in this summer favorite with a little twist.

Spicy BLT Soup

2 pounds assorted tomatoes, roughly chopped

Coarse sea salt and ground pepper

1 small cucumber, roughly chopped

2 medium jalapeno peppers, stemmed and chopped

½ yellow onion, chopped

1 garlic clove, smashed and peeled

2 teaspoons white wine vinegar

1 slice white bread, crust removed, torn into pieces

½ cup extra-virgin olive oil

½ teaspoon sugar

Croutons, crumbled cooked bacon, sliced lettuce

Sprinkle tomatoes with ¼ teaspoon salt; let sit for 10 minutes. Combine tomatoes, cucumber, jalapenos, onion, garlic, vinegar, bread, oil, sugar in blender. Puree until smooth. Pour through fine-mesh sieve into bowl, pressing on solids. Discard solids. Cover, refrigerate until cold, about 2 hours or up to 3 days. Season to taste with salt, pepper. Top with croutons, bacon, lettuce.

Yield: Serves 4.

Grab more food tidbits at the Chef Jeff blog at GrandForksHerald.com.

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