Grilled Jalapeno Shrimp over Gazpacho Salad with Bonus Roasted Pepper Soup

Gazpacho is all the rage in the summer. It's a fresh and filling fusion of summers finest. And easy as pie to make. Let the blender do all the work, just drop the ingredients in.

I began to wonder what would happen if I didn't push the blend button. Certainly it would be a bit cruncher, resembling a salad or salsa rather than a soup, but would the overall taste change? And if it does, is that a bad thing?

The blender sat quietly on the counter while the sounds of my knife filled the kitchen. This gazpacho salad requires just a bit more chopping than a pulverized soup, but I tend to find that process rather calming and methodical.

While tasty, the Gazpacho Salad doesn't really stand on it's own, it needs more. Shrimp grilled with jalapenos adds a great dimension without adding complication.


The final results prove to be a great summer salad. And if your mouth doesn't want to do all the chewing required of this chunky soup turned salad, you could just go ahead and liquify it. Afterall, shrimp do know how to swim.

But, today's recipe comes with its very own bonus Fat and Happy soup recipe. So make the salad and serve the soup as a little starter.


Fat and Happy Food Blog Tips and Techniques: Make the salad the night before or morning of your meal. This will allow the salad to become more flavorful and will make your dinner a snap.

Gazpacho Salad with Grilled Jalapeno Shrimp

roughly 1 dozen shrimp, cleaned and deveined

1 Tbls orange juice

1 tsp finely chopped jalapeno

1 Tbls olive oil

Fresh black pepper

1/2 large tomato

1/2 English cucumber

1/4 red onion

1/2  each of red, yellow and orange bell peppers

1 Tbls chopped cilantro

1 Tbls red wine vinegar

1 Tbls orange juice

2 Tbls olive oil

1 clove garlic

 Salt and fresh black pepper

1 lemon, cut into wedges

Crusty wheat bread

Make the Gazpacho Salad:  Whisk together the cilantro, vinegar, orange juice, olive oil and garlic in a deep bowl. Add salt and pepper to taste. Chop the tomato, cucumber, onion and peppers and toss with the dressing. This salad will become more flavorful the longer it sits.

Prepare the shrimp: In a shallow bowl combine the shrimp, orange juice, chopped jalapeno, olive oil and a turn of fresh black. Allow to marinate for no longer than 20 minutes. Place shrimp on a medium-hot grill for just a minute or two per side until the shrimp turn pink.

Add slices of bread and the lemon wedges to the grill, allowing each to get charred grill marks. Flip the bread and grill on the second side.

If making bonus SOUP: Roast the remaining pepper and tomato halves while the grill is hot. Grill until the skins are blackened and peppers are soft. continue with soup directions below.

Top the salad with the shrimp, squeeze a grilled lemon wedge over the entire dish and serve with the charred bread.

Bonus recipe:  Roasted Pepper Soup

Once pepper halves have been grilled, scrap off the blackened skin. Place the roasted pepper, tomato,
1 smashed garlic clove, a squeeze of lemon juice, salt and pepper and a slice or two of jalapeno into a blender. Blend until smooth. Add salt and pepper to taste.

This soup will make just about 2 cups. If needed, add a drizzle of water or broth to thin the soup as desired.