Recipes: Chilled Early Girl Tomato Soup with Ahi Tuna Tartare

5 medium Chef Jeff Early Girl tomatoes
1 celery stalk
1 Chef Jeff cucumber, peeled and seeded
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 pinch cayenne
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1 drop honey, optional
1 drop hot red pepper sauce, optional
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
1 tablespoon sherry vinegar
1/3 cup grapeseed oil
3 ounces fresh sushi grade ahi tuna, diced
1 teaspoon capers
1 tablespoon chopped Chef Jeff Shallot Matador
1 tablespoon chopped parsley
1 tablespoon chopped chives
2 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
Caviar, optional

Blanch the tomatoes in boiling salted water for 30 seconds. Remove tomatoes and shock them in an ice bath. Peel tomatoes, reserving 1/2 of 1 of the tomatoes. Dice the reserved tomato and set aside.

Using a blender or food processor, puree the tomatoes, the celery and the cucumber until mixture has reached a liquid. Strain puree through a fine mesh strainer. Season to taste with salt, pepper, cayenne, extra-virgin olive oil, honey, and hot red pepper sauce. Chill finished tomato soup until cold.

In a small to medium sized mixing bowl whisk together the mustard, vinegar, salt, pepper, and grapeseed oil. Add the tuna, the reserved diced tomatoes, capers, shallots, parsley, and chives, mixing all ingredients together. Taste for seasoning, and adjust if necessary. Set aside in a cold place. Using 4 small chilled bowls, place equal sized towers of Ahi tartar in the center of each bowl. Whisk or blend the chilled soup and pour about 2 ounces of soup around the tower of tartar, garnish with a sprig of parsley or caviar. Serve.

Prep Time: 30 minutes
Inactive Prep Time: 1 minute
Cook Time: 30 minutes
Yield: 4 servings

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