INGREDIENTS
4 large ripe tomatoes (about 2 pounds)
1 ½ cups fresh Hale orange juice
1 garlic clove, minced
2 tablespoons olive or vegetable oil
2 teaspoons salt
2 tablespoons white wine vinegar
1 ½ teaspoons freshly grated Hale orange rind
1 cup Hale orange segments, cut into small pieces
1 cucumber, peeled, seeded, and chopped
2 green bell peppers, chopped
1/3 cup finely chopped red onion (soak in cold water for 15 minutes and drain)
Cayenne and black pepper, to taste
Croutons
PREPARATION
First, blanch the tomatoes in a kettle of boiling water for not more than a minute. Then, transfer them to a bowl of ice water and let stand until cool enough to peel. After peeling, halve them and scoop out the seeds. In blender or food processor, puree 3 of the tomatoes with ½ cup of the orange juice. (If you have a food processor, you can also chop the cucumber and peppers with it!) Transfer the puree to a bowl and stir in the remaining orange juice, garlic, vinegar, salt, oil, orange rind, chopped orange segments, remaining tomato (chopped), onion, cayenne and black pepper, and ¼ cup of the green pepper. Chill the soup, covered, for at least an hour or, preferably, overnight. Before serving, sprinkle with chopped cucumber and croutons.
YIELD: 6 servings.