I hope you all had a great July 4th holiday weekend! We certainly did and the weather is glorious today, not too hot, actually amazing for July 5th, with the temperature in the low 80’s accompanied by cool breezes. We are here in upstate New York and had our friends Margaret and Wayne over for dinner last night. Margaret said she had even turned on the heat yesterday in her house!!
For our meal, I followed my own instructions, if you got our recipe email from MARY’s secret ingredients for dinner suggestions for the 4th. I made Barbecued Ribs, Corn on the Cob, Sweet and Sour Coleslaw, and I started our dinner with my Smoked Tomato Soup, (minus the Nueske’s sausage and Flathaus Cheese Straws) but decided to serve it at room temperature, which turned out to be a fantastic idea. Some time ago, I remember reading an article in Food & Wine magazine about famous chefs and their mentors. This one focused on April Bloomfield and she said her mentor taught her the most about temperature. Something she was making, she served way too hot. Her mentor said, in so many words, that all of the flavors were not blossoming with all that heat.
Well my soup, because the tomatoes were smoked and it contained smoky bacon, was actually intended to be served hot, but who wants hot soup on July 4th? So then, I thought, I’ll serve it cold and it’ll be a different form of gazpacho. But no, I said to myself, that won’t work. Serving it cold would obliterate the beautiful bacony, smoky flavors that I had worked so hard to create. So after I pureed it, I just let it sit on a cool burner on the stovetop, letting it come to room temperature – and it was divine!!
I made this decision to take a leap of faith – fortunately we were with good, forgiving friends if it turned out to be a really bad idea. However, this was a really great idea! So I just thought I’d share.
This soup also contains one of our new ingredients from our summer box. You’ll find it to be surprising so stay tuned for the upcoming posts where I’ll reveal all of the great new products!
Let’s all appreciate our freedom and give thanks!!
The Very Best Way to Cook Corn on the Cob
Sweet and Sour Coleslaw
Smoked Tomato Soup with Nueske’s Sausages and Flathaus Cheese Straw Croutons
Potato Salad Winner Announced!!
Summer pleasures!!
Beautiful weather, good friends, great food and a lovely vacation spot, it just doesn’t get any better than that. The soup sounds wonderful.
Suzanne recently posted…Happy Independance Day!!
You’re right Suzanne!! All great things…
Hope you enjoyed a terrific weekend too!
As the ‘Margaret” who was happily dining with Mary and her husband I can attest to the loveliness of the soup at just room temperature. Wonderful flavors really took over the dish. Mary also added a crunchy top (with cinnamon) that added lots of good taste. Great time, Mary, thank you.
Thank you Margaret!!! 🙂 🙂 🙂
And thanks for bringing the beautiful wine!!
A lot of food competitions judge the food at room temperature to get a true sense of all the flavours. Happy 4th of July to you 🙂
Tandy | Lavender and Lime recently posted…Win A Copy Of Low Carb Is Lekker
Really!? Cool – thanks Tandy!
Very creative recipe for one of the season’s best. I like the way you made this soup. I never thought about smoking tomatoes before. Will definitely have to try that.
Jovina Coughlin recently posted…Summer Pie Season
Smoking the tomatoes makes it very interesting, Jovina. I know you’d like it!
I think you found the perfect temperature solution and this soup sounds absolutely perfect!
Thanks Sues!! 🙂
Love the menu you served on July 4th. If I had known, I would’ve come over! Haha!
Kristi @ Inspiration Kitchen recently posted…Chicken Chop Suey
LOL – you would have been welcome, Kristi!!
For the first time in a long time, we celebrated the 4th with another American. She is still a bit homesick so we did everything from apple pie to hot dogs. She left with a smile on her face. I’m sure your meal would have been nicer than our traditional holiday fare. 🙂
Maureen | Orgasmic Chef recently posted…Breakfast Potatoes and Eggs
Aww – how nice of you to do that, Maureen!!
Smokey tomato and bacon soup..sounds really yum. I would devour the whole bowl even if it’s HOT.
Angie@Angie’s Recipes recently posted…Blueberry, Nectarine Spelt Cake with Yoghurt and Almond
LOL – You’re cute, Angie!!