Chilled Almond Soup with Grapes

Called ajo blanco – white garlic soup – this is a Moorish recipe of ancient origin. It is a perfect balance of crushed almonds, garlic and vinegar in a smooth purée enriched with olive oil.

Although today we use a food processor or blender to break down the bread, almonds and garlic, in days of old this grinding would have been done with a pestle and mortar.

To accentuate the flavour of the almonds, dry roast them in a frying pan until they are lightly browned before grinding them. This will provide a slightly darker soup.

Ingredients:

115g stale white bread

250ml blanched almonds

2 garlic cloves, sliced

75ml olive oil

25ml sherry vinegar

Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

For the Garnish:

Toasted flaked almonds

Green and black grapes, halved and seeded

Fresh chives, chopped

Method:

Break the bread into a bowl and pour 150ml cold water over it. Leave to soak for about 5 minutes, and squeeze the bread dry.

Put the almonds and garlic in a blender and process until very finely ground. Add the soaked white bread and process again until thoroughly combined. Continue to process, gradually adding oil until the mixture forms a smooth paste. Add the sherry vinegar, followed by 600ml cold water and process until the mixture is smooth.

Transfer the soup to a large bowl and season with salt and pepper, adding a little more water if the soup is very thick. Cover with cling film and chill for 2 hours or more.

Ladle the soup into bowls. Scatter the almonds, halved grapes and chopped chives over to garnish.

Serves 6