The words "celebrate the season" were all over my mind when I went to the market. My iffy mood was immediately healed by row upon row of incredible summer produce. Summer cherry tomatoes (stay tuned for something special with those), tomatillos, and shishito peppers sang to me today. On a sort-of-warm San Francisco summer day, I wanted to make something cool and refreshing to match my refreshed mood. 

This *incredibly* easy, less than 20 minute gazpacho is perfect for your next outdoor summer party. Chilled and bright, it combines fresh tomatillos, shishito peppers, cucumbers, and a little bit of avocado with some wonderfully mellow but vibrant spices. Coriander, a bit of ajwain, and mellow white peppercorns all provide a little grounding for this super bright gazpacho. Top it all off with cast-iron blistered shishito peppers and fresh, cool sweet corn for the most wonderful summer appetizer. 

recipe

Combine all the ingredients except spices in a blender until smooth. 

Dry toast the spices in a dry skillet over low-medium heat for 2 minutes until fragrant. Grind in spice grinder or coffee grinder. Add to blender and pulse several times until combined. Add a bit more himalayan salt if needed. 

Chill gazpacho. When ready to serve, blister shishito peppers in hot cast-iron skillet with a little bit of olive oil and large flake salt. This should take no more than 1-2 minutes in a hot pan. Cut sweet corn kernels off of cob - no need to cook if ripe and in season. Serve gazpacho cold, topped with warm shishito peppers, and sweet crunchy corn kernels. 

Serves 4-6 as an appetizer.