Summertime Gazpacho

My husband and I recently finished "The 3-Day Cleanse" by the founders of "BluePrintCleanse"; ever heard of it? More on this in the future........one meal the founders recommended to prepare your body for the cleanse is Gazpacho. I grew up eating this during the summer as a child, but had kind of forgotten about this healthy, inexpensive, and don't forget tasty, cold soup. There are so many variations of Gazpacho so here is my "pennyless" version. It's ideal for the summertime and using up those summer tomatoes, and other vegetables as well!

Ingredients:
-1 cucumber , peeled, seeded, and diced
-1 green bell pepper, seeded and diced
-1 jalapeno (optional)
-3 medium tomatoes, seeded and diced
-1-2 tablespoons white wine vinegar (regular vinegar can be substituted just use less)
-2 cloves of garlic
-3 tablespoons Extra Virgin Olive Oil
-2 teaspoons of Sea salt
-1 avocado peeled and diced
-Freshly ground black pepper
Directions:
Place 1/2 cup and cucumber and 1/2 cup of green bell pepper in a bowl to the side. Place all remaining ingredients, minus the avocado, in a food processor and pulse until smooth. This may take a few minutes. Pour in large bowl and mix in diced cucumber and green bell pepper. Garnish with avocado, a drizzle of olive oil and more ground black pepper. Serve cold or at room temperature.

You can certainly add whatever vegetables you want to this cold soup and pulse those until smooth. Zucchini, squash, and eggplant would be delicious, especially after sauteing in a bit of olive oil.