No-Cook Tomato Buttermilk Soup

• Recipe by Dennis Leary

Leary drains fresh tomato puree slowly through cheesecloth to get clear tomato water, then blends it with buttermilk to create a pure-white chilled soup. In this more rustic version, the tomato puree is drained through a coarser strainer, giving the soup a lovely pink hue.

Ingredients

1. 3 pounds red tomatoes, coarsely chopped
2. Kosher salt
3. 3/4 cup buttermilk
4. Freshly ground pepper
5. 1 pound red and yellow cherry tomatoes, halved
6. 2 tablespoons chopped basil
7. 1 tablespoon chopped parsley
8. 1 scallion, minced
9. 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
10. 1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice

Directions

1. Season the chopped tomatoes with 2 teaspoons of kosher salt and let stand at room temperature for 1 hour.
2. In a blender, puree the tomatoes. Strain the puree through a coarse sieve set over a bowl. Stir in the buttermilk. Season the soup with salt and pepper and refrigerate until chilled, at least 30 minutes.
3. In a bowl, toss the cherry tomatoes with the basil, parsley, scallion, oil and lemon juice. Season with salt and pepper.
4. Ladle the soup into shallow bowls. Spoon the cherry tomato salad in the center of each soup and serve.