BLA and Gazpacho

Wow. This was my favorite of the week, and the hubs loved it. He loved it so much that he asked for another sandwich once we got home from a tumultuous Ikea trip. Picture desk top strapped to the top of a VW flapping in the wind. Yeah, it was fun. I have been wanting to make gazpacho all summer and finally got a good crop of tomatoes from the farm to make it, though luckily I had some cucumbers left over from the previous week because they did not arrive in last week's box. Add some jalapenos from the garden, nice. Now, this is not a traditional gazpacho, it is a "what do I have in my cupboard and fridge" gazpacho. The hubs is not entirely fond of gazpacho, though was willing to give it another shot as I had not made it in a couple years. I knew that he needed a hearty dish to go along with it, so I put my thinking cap on and got to work. We had some crusty french bread leftover from our french cheese and pear night a couple days before, generally always have guacamole in the fridge, and a nice head of lettuce from the farm. Throw in some fake bacon, and voila! This meal was so light and refreshing, and the best part: no oven! And i only used the stove top for about 3 minutes to cook up the bacon. They always say on the cooking competitions I watch that adding bacon to something gives you an unfair advantage...

BLA

4 slices of bacon (we use fake meatless bacon from morningstar, still pretty tasty and cheaper)

2 large sections of french bread

2 pieces of lettuce, washed

few slices of extra sharp cheddar cheese

6 T guacamole or a couple slices of avocado (hence the A)

Melt the cheese on top of the french bread by placing it on a flat frying pan as you cook up the bacon. It helps if you put a lid over them.

Spread the guacamole on to the bread opposite the cheese, top with lettuce and bacon, enjoy!

Gazpacho

5-7 medium tomatoes, cored and quartered

2 medium cucumber mostly peeled and quartered

3 T white wine vinegar (or more to taste)

3 T cilantro, chopped

1/2 onion, halved

2 cloves garlic, finely diced

1/4 c olive oil

2 jalapenos, seeded and quartered

salt and pepper to taste

Blend ingredients in blender in batches, then mix together in a bowl and chill for several hours. Makes a great dipping sauce for the BLA's! Or as a fresh salsa with a cuke coolness!