Kid-friendly Glorious Garden Gazpacho with Corn Relish + Cheesy Herb Torta (Flatbread) Recipe - Sticky Fingers Cooking
over 1,000 kid-approved recipes coming soon! save your flavorites
Recipes
/
Family Meal Plan: Glorious Garden Gazpacho with Corn Relish + Cheesy Herb Torta (Flatbread)

Family Meal Plan: Glorious Garden Gazpacho with Corn Relish + Cheesy Herb Torta (Flatbread)

Glorious Garden Gazpacho with Corn Relish + Cheesy Herb Torta (Flatbread)

by Erin Fletter
Photo by Martin Turzak/Shutterstock.com
prep time
40 minutes
cook time
5 minutes
makes
4-6 servings

Fun Food Story

Skip to recipe

Glorious Garden Gazpacho with Corn Relish

We'll be making a chilled soup from Andalusia in southern Spain called "gazpacho" (gahs-PAH-choh) that is perfect for a light summer meal. It is a refreshing blended soup made with tomatoes and other raw vegetables. Traditionally, the vegetables were pounded with a mortar and pestle, but you can use your blender for our version.

Happy & Healthy Cooking,

Chef Erin, Food-Geek-in-Chief
scale
1X
2X
3X
4X
5X
6X
7X

Shopping List

  • FRESH OR FROZEN
  • 6 to 8 ripe tomatoes, any type will be wonderful **(see allergy subs below)**
  • 3 cucumbers
  • 1 garlic clove
  • 1 small onion slice
  • 1 C fresh or frozen corn
  • 1 avocado
  • fresh tarragon (for 2 T torn leaves)
  • fresh or dried herbs to knead into flatbread dough
  • BREAD
  • 2 slices white bread or 1/4 baguette **(see allergy subs below)**
  • DAIRY
  • 1 C Monterey Jack cheese **(see allergy subs below)**
  • 2 C plain yogurt **(see allergy subs below)**
  • PANTRY
  • 3/4 C extra virgin olive oil (or vegetable oil **)
  • 1 T vinegar
  • 4 1/2 tsp salt
  • 2 1/2 tsp granulated sugar
  • 4 1/2 C all-purpose flour **(see allergy subs below)**
  • 1 tsp baking powder

Fun-Da-Mentals Kitchen Skills

  • blend :

    to stir together two or more ingredients until just combined; blending is a gentler process than mixing.

  • chill :

    to cool, not freeze, food or drink by putting it on ice or in a refrigerator.

  • chop :

    to cut something into small, rough pieces using a blade.

  • coat :

    to apply a covering of flour, breadcrumbs, oil, sauce, or batter to food before baking or frying.

  • fry :

    to fry in a pan in a small amount of fat.

  • measure :

    to calculate the specific amount of an ingredient required using a measuring tool (like measuring cups or spoons).

  • mix :

    to thoroughly combine two or more ingredients until uniform in texture.

  • rest (dough) :

    to let bread or pastry dough relax, allowing the dough to absorb more liquid and become more pliable before shaping it.

  • season :

    to add flavor to food with spices, herbs, and salt.

  • soak :

    to immerse a hard food for a certain amount of time in a liquid to soften it.

  • tear :

    to pull or rip apart a food, like basil leaves, into pieces instead of cutting with a knife; cutting breaks cell walls more, so herbs can discolor faster.

  • toss :

    to lightly lift and drop food items together or coat food items with flour, or a sauce or dressing, as in a salad.

Equipment Checklist

  • Skillet
  • Large mixing bowl
  • Dry measuring cups
  • Measuring spoons
  • Wooden spoon
  • Cutting board
  • Clean damp dish towel or paper towel
  • Pastry brush to oil skillet
  • Heat-resistant spatula
  • Blender (or bowl + immersion blender)
  • Liquid measuring cup
  • Kid-safe knife
  • Medium bowl
scale
1X
2X
3X
4X
5X
6X
7X

Ingredients

Glorious Garden Gazpacho with Corn Relish

  • Gazpacho:
  • 2 slices white bread or 1/4 baguette **(for GLUTEN ALLERGY sub gluten-free/nut-free bread)**
  • 1/2 C extra virgin olive oil
  • 1 T vinegar
  • 6 to 8 ripe tomatoes, any type will be wonderful **(for NIGHTSHADE ALLERGY sub 3 to 4 C chopped cucumbers or honeydew melon)**
  • 1 cucumber
  • 1 small onion slice
  • 1 garlic clove
  • 2 tsp sugar
  • 3 tsp salt
  • Corn relish:
  • 2 cucumbers
  • 1 C fresh or frozen corn
  • 1 avocado
  • 2 T fresh tarragon leaves, torn
  • 1 pinch salt
  • 1 drizzle extra virgin olive oil

Cheesy Herb Torta (Flatbread)

  • 4 C all-purpose flour + more for dusting **(for GLUTEN ALLERGY sub gluten-free/nut-free all-purpose flour)**
  • 1 tsp baking powder
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 2 C plain yogurt **(for DAIRY ALLERGY sub dairy-free/nut-free plain yogurt)**
  • 1 C shredded Monterey Jack cheese **(Omit for DAIRY ALLERGY or sub dairy-free/nut-free cheese)**
  • fresh or dried herbs to knead into dough
  • extra virgin olive oil (or vegetable oil **) for brushing on dough and cooking

Food Allergen Substitutions

Glorious Garden Gazpacho with Corn Relish

  • Gluten/Wheat: Substitute gluten-free/nut-free bread.
  • Nightshade: For 6 to 8 tomatoes, substitute 3 to 4 C chopped cucumbers or honeydew melon.

Cheesy Herb Torta (Flatbread)

  • Gluten/Wheat: Substitute gluten-free/nut-free all-purpose flour.
  • Dairy: Substitute dairy-free/nut-free plain yogurt. Omit Monterey Jack cheese or substitute dairy-free/nut-free cheese shreds.
  • Soy: Use extra virgin olive oil or substitute canola oil or other nut-free high-smoking point oil for vegetable oil.

Instructions

Glorious Garden Gazpacho with Corn Relish

1.
intro

Gazpacho (gahs-PAH-choh) is a delicious, cold, tomato-based raw vegetable soup! This yummy soup originated in southern Spain. Gazpacho remained popular with farmers as a way to cool off during the summer and as a simple way to make a cool, easily eaten lunch with locally available ingredients such as fresh vegetables, olive oil, and bread.

2.
tear + soak

Tear 2 bread slices or 1/4 baguette into pieces and add to a large bowl. Measure 1/2 cup olive oil and 1 tablespoon vinegar and add them to the bowl so that the bread starts to soak up the liquid.

3.
chop + season

Have kids chop 6 to 8 ripe tomatoes, 1 cucumber, and 1 small onion slice and add them to the bowl with the bread. Peel and mince 1 garlic clove and add it to the bowl. Season with 2 teaspoons sugar and 3 teaspoons sea salt.

4.
blend + chill

Pour the bread and tomato mixture into a blender (or leave in the bowl for use with an immersion blender) and blend at high speed until thick and creamy. Taste the gazpacho and add more salt or sugar to taste. Put in the fridge and let chill for at least 1 hour or up to 24 hours.

5.
chop + toss

Next, make the corn relish. Have kids chop 2 cucumbers and the flesh of 1 avocado, tear 2 tablespoons of tarragon leaves, and add them to a medium bowl. Add 1 cup of sweet corn. Toss together with 1 drizzle of olive oil and 1 pinch of salt. Serve on top of the gazpacho. Enjoy with Cheesy Herb Torta (Flatbread). ¡Buen provecho!

Cheesy Herb Torta (Flatbread)

1.
measure + mix + knead

Have kids mix together 4 cups flour, 1 teaspoon baking powder, and 1 teaspoon salt into a large bowl. Stir in 2 cups of plain yogurt until the dough is too stiff for a spoon, then knead it in the bowl until it holds together well, adding more flour if necessary. Have kids add 1 cup of shredded Monterey Jack cheese to the dough.

2.
knead + season + rest

Turn dough out on a floured surface and cut into pieces for each kid. Have kids continue kneading their dough for about 5 minutes until the dough feels smooth and elastic. Have them add any fresh or dried herbs as they wish. Roll the dough into balls and put the dough balls in an oiled bowl covered with a clean damp dish towel, setting them aside to rest at room temperature for 30 to 60 minutes.

3.
coat + press

Coat each dough ball in olive oil. Give each child a dough ball and have them press the dough into flat round disks, less than 1/4-inch thick. The thinner the better!

4.
brush + fry

Brush some oil on a hot skillet or griddle on your stove. Lay the flattened dough balls on the hot skillet and cook them over medium heat for 2 to 3 minutes. They will puff up in places or all over, and there may be some blackish-brown spots on the bottom, which is totally okay. Slide a spatula under the flatbreads and flip them, for 1 to 2 minutes, just till it finishes puffing up into a balloon and begins to color lightly on top. Fit as many bread disks as you can in the skillet. Serve with salad or soup, like our Glorious Garden Gazpacho with Corn Relish.

Surprise Ingredient: Tomato!

back to recipe
Photo by Zaitsava Olga/Shutterstock.com

Hi! I’m Tomato!

"I'm a beautiful, juicy red Tomato. Do you pronounce my name: "tuh-may-tow" or "tuh-mah-tow?" Either way you slice it (or say it), we tomatoes are wonderfully adaptable. You'll find us fresh or cooked on sandwiches, in salads, tacos, soups, stews, sauces, and much more." 

History & Etymology

  • The tomatoes we have now descended from the pea-size fruit of wild plants that grew in western South America. Mesoamericans were the first to domesticate the tomato plant sometime before 500 BCE. 
  • Hernán Cortés, a Spanish conquistador, may have brought tomatoes back to Europe in the 16th century after conquering the Aztec city, Tenochtitlan (now Mexico City). 
  • Tomatoes cultivated in North American colonies in the early 1700s may have been introduced from the Caribbean. Thomas Jefferson also brought tomato seeds back from France. Before tomatoes were used in cooking, the plants were used ornamentally due to some people's beliefs that they were poisonous. One reason for this error was that tomatoes come from the nightshade family, including the belladonna plant (or deadly nightshade), which has highly toxic leaves and berries. Another reason may be that the pewter plates they used back then adversely reacted to the acid in tomato juice. 
  • China is by far the largest producer of tomatoes in the world. In the United States, California and Florida produce the most tomatoes.
  • The American and British pronunciations of "tomato" were made famous by an Ira and George Gershwin song from 1937 called "Let's Call the Whole Thing Off." Americans pronounce the word "tuh-may-tow," and the British say "tuh-mah-tow."
  • The word "tomato" comes from the Spanish, French, or Portuguese "tomate," from the Nahuatl "tomatl."

Anatomy 

  • The tomato is a berry from the tomato plant (Solanum Lycopersicum), a perennial vine. It is part of the Solanaceae family, like the potato, pepper, eggplant, and petunia. Since it is a berry, it is a fruit, although mainly used as a vegetable. 
  • A tomato's color is usually red but can also be yellow, orange, green, or purple. Tomatoes can be spherical, oval, or pear-shaped. Their flesh is pulpy with cavities, called locules, that hold the seeds. 
  • There are more than 10,000 tomato varieties. Some are hybrids, and some are heirlooms. An heirloom tomato is a variety that has been grown for generations on a family farm rather than commercially. Unfortunately, in the past 40 years, many heirloom varieties have been lost, along with the smaller family farms that grew them. However, hundreds of heirloom tomato varieties are still available. 

How to Pick, Buy, & Eat

  • If you are growing your own tomatoes, pick them from the vine while still firm, with a slight give, and before their ripe color (usually red) deepens too much. While holding the fruit, twist it off the stem until it snaps off. The leaf on top of the tomato (the calyx) and part of the stem will come with it. You can also snip it off using garden scissors.
  • When you choose tomatoes at the store, pick fruit that has smooth, brightly colored skin with no cracks or bruises, is firm but gives with slight pressure, is heavy for its size, and has a pleasant, aromatic smell. Avoid tomatoes with pale or dark spots.  
  • Store tomatoes at room temperature, as their flavor will decrease in a refrigerator's cold temperature. Wait to wash them until you are ready to use them.
  • If you plan to make a tomato sauce or soup using fresh, raw tomatoes, you will want to peel them first. This can be difficult without some preparation: First, put a pot of water on the stove to boil and fill a large bowl with cold or icy water. Next, after washing the tomatoes, use your knife to cut a shallow 'X' through the skin at the top or bottom of each one. Then use a slotted spoon to place the tomatoes into the boiling water until the skin begins to loosen and peel back at the incision, about 30 to 60 seconds. Finally, immediately dunk them into the ice water. The skin should peel easily now. You can also remove the seeds by cutting the peeled tomatoes in half and scooping the seeds out with a spoon.  
  • Tomatoes are versatile vegetables for cooking. Ripe tomatoes can be prepared fresh, stuffed, baked, boiled, or stewed, and they are the base for many sauces. You can also pickle green, unripe tomatoes, add them to salsa or bread and fry them.

Nutrition

  • Tomatoes are a moderate source of vitamin C, and cooked tomatoes are high in lycopene, an antioxidant, which may help protect your body's cells from damage, strengthen your immune system, and prevent some diseases.

 

What is Gazpacho?

Photo by pepers/Shutterstock.com
  • Gazpacho (gahs-PAH-choh) is a blended tomato-based vegetable soup traditionally served cold, originating in the southern Spanish region of Andalucía. Gazpacho is widely consumed in Spanish cuisine. Gazpacho is mainly consumed during summer due to its refreshing qualities and cold serving temperature. Farmers would sip on cold gazpacho in the hot summer while tending their crops.
  • Gazpacho may have originated in Islamic Spain between the 7th and 13th centuries but may go back to early Roman times. That version would have included bread, olive oil, vinegar, water, and garlic. Tomatoes were added to make red gazpacho sometime during the 16th century. Before blenders, the vegetables were pounded and blended using a mortar and pestle.
  • Modern versions of gazpacho may include bread, tomato, cucumber, garlic, onion, bell pepper, and avocado.

Let's Learn About Spain!

Photo by MJTH/Shutterstock.com
  • Spain is on the Iberian peninsula in Europe. Its official name is the "Kingdom of Spain," and its capital is Madrid. Spain's government is a constitutional monarchy, with a king, prime minister, and parliament. The population of Spain is more than 47 million people. 
  • Mediterranean settlers migrated to Spain, Africa, and Europe, and a people known as the Phoenicians called the Iberian peninsula "Span" ("hidden land"), so you can see where the name Spain might have come from! 
  • Did you know there is more than just one Spanish language?! The official and most prominent language of Spain is Castilian Spanish. However, Spanish dialects are also spoken, such as Andalusian, Canarian, Castúo, and Murcian Spanish. In addition, there are six other regional, co-official languages recognized in the country, including Aranese, Basque, Catalan, Galician, and Valencian. 
  • The Mediterranean climate in Spain means that summers are hot and dry, especially in the south. However, snow can be found in the winter, especially in the Pyrenees, mountains in the north that border France.
  • Soccer or "fútbol" is the most popular sport in Spain. Some of the other sports Spaniards participate in are tennis, cycling, basketball, and handball. 
  • Spain is known for its rich culture and exciting festivals. The Tomatina Festival is the world's biggest food fight. It's held on the last Wednesday in August every year when people throw over 100 tons of tomatoes on the streets of Buñol. The festival of San Fermin, in Pamplona, in the northern region of Navarre, is an eight-day celebration in honor of Saint Fermin, the co-patron of Navarre. The famous Running of the Bulls event occurs each morning of the festival when a small group of bulls and steers are let loose to run down fenced-off streets toward the bull-fighting ring. Young adults, often tourists, try to race ahead of the animals, dodging the bulls' horns when overtaken. Unfortunately, a few people always end up being injured during the runs.
  • Spanish art, food, literature, and music have become popular all over the world. Examples are the famous Spanish novel, Don Quixote, written in the early 1600s by Miguel de Cervantes; the painter Francisco Goya's works from the late 18th to early 19th century; and Flamenco music and dance from Andalusia, first documented in 1774. 
  • In addition to fideuà and paella, Spain is known for its "gazpacho" (a cold veggie soup), "jamón ibérico" (dry-cured ham), "olla podrida" (a meat and veggie stew), and Manchego cheese (sheep cheese from the La Mancha region). Spanish cooks use a lot of garlic and olive oil, of which they are the largest producer. 
  • "Tapas" refers to a Spanish way of eating, in addition to the name of small dishes served individually as appetizers or combined to make a meal. When friends are out together, they will often share tapas plates at their table. The Spanish word "tapa" can mean "top," "lid," or "cover," and tapas may have begun as a slice of bread or meat to cover a wine glass to keep beach sand or flies out. In many parts of northern Spain, such as Basque Country and Navarre, tapas are called "pintxos" or "pinchos."

What's It Like to Be a Kid in Spain?

  • Most Spanish children speak the Spanish language, also called Castilian, but some may speak Catalan, Galician, or Basque, depending on where they live in the country. 
  • Families are close-knit, and grandparents often take care of children if both parents work. 
  • Kids primarily play soccer but also play basketball, tennis, handball, or other sports. They may visit beaches, zoos, aquariums, museums, and amusement parks for fun. 
  • A popular breakfast is a churro with a chocolaty drink made with ColaCao. "Tortilla de patatas" (potato omelet) is also a favorite. Kids might have a snack at school since they might not have lunch until they get home, and they look forward to "la merienda," a snack between lunch and dinner that often consists of a sandwich, since dinner may not be served until 8 pm. 

That's Berry Funny

Why did the tomato blush? 

Because he saw the salad dressing!

That's Berry Funny

Diner: "Waiter, my soup is cold!"

Waiter: "It's Gazpacho!"

Diner: "Gazpacho, my soup is cold!"

Lettuce Joke Around

Why didn't anyone laugh at the gardener's jokes?

Because they were too corny!

That's Berry Funny

How do you fix a broken tomato? 

Tomato paste!

Lettuce Joke Around

What do you call a roll that loses weight?

Flatbread!

Lettuce Joke Around

How do you get a mouse to smile? 

Say "Cheese!"

That's Berry Funny

Why didn’t the cheese want to get sliced? 

It had grater plans!

Shop Our Cookbooks

Now available on Amazon! Our cookbooks feature kid-tested recipes that build confidence in the kitchen. Expand your child's palate and spark a love of healthy foods with a Sticky Fingers Cooking cookbook.
SHOP NOW

Subscribe to the Sticky Fingers Cooking mailing list

Subscribe to our newsletter, The Turnip, to receive exclusive discounts and updates, insider tips + tricks from our awesome team, and instant access to the Sticky Fingers Cooking Starter Kit for free!

"
X
Simply the zest!
Cathy from Palatine just joined a class