This corn gazpacho recipe is one of my all-time favorites. Gazpacho has always been a mystery to me, I never really understood the hype around blended cold vegetables until now. If you choose the right vegetables, pair it with the right kind of spice and a good olive oil? It turns into something amazing.

The one downside though is that gazpacho doesn’t always sit with me as a full meal, it’s more of a light snack, or a starter. So this corn gazpacho needed to be different – enter scene: crispy rice (for texture!) and slow roasted salmon (because I love it). And that’s how I got the best summer gazpacho recipe, and turned it into a full meal.

Read on for how to make it!

So what exactly is gazpacho?

So gazpacho has many forms, but it is a cold soup made up of blended raw vegetables that originated in Spain and Portugal. It’s still incredibly popular there, and most often served in the hot summer months. Gazpacho typically looks bright red, but it can come in many colors and many forms, all dependent on your preference and your recipe!

The most common gazpacho recipes contain some version of old bread, tomato, cucumbers, onion, bell peppers, garlic, olive oil, vinegar, water, and salt. So this recipe mirror the traditional, but with a different color!

Ingredients for this corn gazpacho

• 2 golden heirloom tomatoes, roughly chopped
• 1 yellow pepper, seeded and chopped
• 1 ear of corn, shucked and kernels removed
• 1 jalapeño chopped up, seeds removed if you don’t like spice
• 1 lime
• 2 tbsp white wine vinegar
• 2 tbsp olive oil, plus more as needed

How to make the gazpacho

In a large blender, add the tomato, bell pepper, corn kernels, jalapeño and juice from one lime. Add in the vinegar and olive oil. The tomatoes should have enough moisture that you do not need to add any additional liquid. Blend until you get a smooth soup.

If your gazpacho is too thick, add 2 tbsp of ice water at a time, as needed, to help the blending process. (You might need to do this if you have young tomatoes!)

Pour the gazpacho into a bowl, season with salt and pepper to taste, and add olive oil as needed. Set this in the fridge to chill.

I like to chill the gazpacho while the rest of the recipe is prepping, so that it maintains its coolness and its color. The hot/cold texture contrast is really what makes this recipe special, so don’t forget the gazpacho and leave it out at room temp!

(But also with a color like that, who could really forget it, you know?)

How to make the slow roasted salmon

The slow roasted salmon is the easy part here (and one of my most favorite!)

Just preheat the oven to 325F. Place the whole slab of salmon on a parchment lined baking sheet. Season with salt and pepper and roast at 325F for 14-15 minutes. Then boom. You have buttery salmon ready for dinner.

Ingredients for the crispy rice disks

This part is a little more involved, but it is so so worth it. Here are the things you need:

• 1 cup short-grain white sushi rice
• 1 tbsp rice vinegar optional
• 1/2 cup sunflower oil or other neutral frying oil

How to make crispy rice discs

The freezing part is integral here, but otherwise this frying process is simple! And the crunch….irresistible

In a rice cooker or on the stove, cook the rice per package instructions.
Preheat the oven to 325F.
When the rice is done, drizzle in the rice vinegar and stir. Then using a wet hand, press the rice into ring molds to form 1″ high discs. Put these in the freezer for 15 minutes.

Then while the salmon is roasting, bring a cast iron pan to medium high heat. Add in the sunflower oil. Fry the frozen rice disks for about 2-3 minutes on each side, or until golden brown. Set them on paper towels to drain.

Bringing this bowl of corn gazpacho together

Plating is always my favorite part – it’s how you get to let all your hard work finally shine!

For this, just remove the salmon from the oven and flake it into large pieces.
Then add a serving of chilled gazpacho to a bowl. Crack the crispy rice on top, in halves or in quarters, and then add large pieces of salmon. Drizzle on olive oil and crack on black pepper to finish!

Looking for other good summer meal ideas?

Here are a few I’ve been loving from the blog!

BAKING + SWEET, COOKIES, RECIPES, VEGETARIAN · JULY 16, 2022

Brown Butter Banana Cookies

 Jump to Recipe  PRINT RECIPE

I have been trying for ages to make a cookie just as iconic as my Best Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies – and I think, I *think* I have finally met their match with these crispy-edged-soft-centered brown butter banana cookies. I mean look at them! They have the perfect crinkly tops, enough chocolate to cure any bad mood, a subtle banana flavor and just a hint of cinnamon to keep your taste buds guessing. Plus! The recipe has no ingredient carryover – meaning that this uses one whole banana, two sticks of butter, and one bag of chocolate chips. So you’ll never be left wondering “ok what do I do with these 2 other tablespoons of butter?” Everything will be used up – and for very good reason.

Read on for all my tips/tricks on how to make these brown butter banana chocolate chip cookies!

Table of contents

• Wet ingredients for this brown butter banana cookie
• Dry ingredients for this brown butter banana cookie
• How to prepare the brown butter
• How to prepare the banana to be mixed into the brown butter cookie dough
• How to incorporate the dry ingredients
• What can you add besides chocolate chips?
• How to bake these brown butter banana cookies
• A full step-by-step guide for this banana cookie recipe
• Looking for other cookie recipes?
• Why do I offer measurements in grams for this brown butter chocolate chip cookie recipe?

Wet ingredients for this brown butter banana cookie

• 16 tbsp butter or vegan butter substitute
• 1/2 cup brown sugar, 80 grams
• 1 cup white sugar, 220 grams
• 1 medium banana, ripe, 110 grams
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon
• 1 tsp vanilla extract

Dry ingredients for this brown butter banana cookie

• 2 cups & 2 tbsp flour, 300 grams
• 6 tbsp cornstarch, 42 grams
• 2 & 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp Diamond Crystal kosher salt, 1/2 tsp if using Morton’s
• 2 cups chocolate chips, 340 grams

How to prepare the brown butter

This recipe uses half brown butter, half butter that is just room-temp. Which is why we need two whole sticks 

The reason for this is brown butter lends so much flavor, but normal butter aerates better when mixed with sugar, so it gives a better texture, and a higher yield of cookies. You’ll see a lot of cooks use this method, because it gives you the best of both worlds.

So to prepare the butter, I like to put the one stick in a sauce pan on medium heat. Add the other stick to a stand mixer with the sugars and vanilla. Cook the browning butter on medium, stirring occasionally, until it starts to fizz slightly. Continue to stir until you see the milk solids turn a toasty brown. Take it off the heat and let it come to room temperature before adding it in to the stand mixer.

Then the key point is to mix the wet ingredients on medium until they go from a thick mixture to a light and fluffy combination. You’ll see the dough noticeably lighten in color until it is almost cream-colored – this is a good thing! Stop here to add the banana.

How to prepare the banana to be mixed into the brown butter cookie dough

The banana goes into the batter next. I like to mash it up well – very well, which means doing it on a flat cutting board, and I also like to mash the cinnamon into the banana. I do this so that the cinnamon flavor clings to the banana and doesn’t get lost in the cookie. This means that in every bite where someone tastes banana, cinnamon will be its perfect side kick.

Add the mashed banana into the wet ingredients and mix again on medium-low until the dough regains its fluffiness.

How to incorporate the dry ingredients

Whisk all the dry ingredients together in a side bowl – this is again to ensure even incorporation. I like to then add them into the brown butter banana cookie dough a bit at a time, using a spatula to fold and incorporate.

Even with all the dry ingredients mixed in, the batter will be very fluffy. So don’t overmix!

What can you add besides chocolate chips?

Now this is where I tell you to add a whole bag of chocolate chips to these brown butter banana cookies with no shame – NO SHAME I TELL U. But also, you have options! If you aren’t a chocolate person, no reason to deprive yourself of banana. You can also play around with the following:

• Oats – to make this a delicious oatmeal cookie
• Butterscotch chips – have me drooling just thinking about them
• Coconut flakes – another easy drool worthy swap
• Raisins! – because I don’t believe anyone who could hate on a raisin cookie smh
• And of course, chopped chocolate – for those of you who don’t believe chocolate chips melt well enough…which ok, that is FAIR

How to bake these brown butter banana cookies

The easy answer is 375F for 13-14 minutes, but my crucial answer is: Until they are baked, but not quite.

My ultimate cookie hack is underbaking your cookies just slightly, and then letting the residual heat outside of the oven help finish the cooking. What this does is help your cookies stay chewy for days, instead of just when they are right out of the oven.

You want your cookies to have staying power, and this hack helps them stay amazing, whereas cookies that are done right out of the oven tend to harden and crisp over time. Just try it once, you’ll never look back!

My second tip is smack the baking pan on the counter to help them flatten. This is another crucial step, or else the cookies might be a bit too puffy for your liking. But if you smack them down right out of the oven, they turn into thin, circular dreams.

A full step-by-step guide for this banana cookie recipe

• Preheat the oven to 375F.
• In a small saucepan, brown 8 tbsp of the butter. Do this by putting the pan on medium-low heat and letting the butter fully melt. Stir occasionally, until you see the milk solids start to separate and form flecks on the bottom of the pan. Let the butter fizz a bit and continue to stir. Continue this for about 2-3 minutes, or until the milk solids start to become a golden brown. Turn the heat to medium and stir consistently for 1 more minute, then remove the butter from the heat and stir until it is a deep, almost dark gold brown. Pour the browned butter into a bowl and whisk it to lower the temperature slightly. Set aside.
• In the bowl of a stand mixer, add the other 8 tbsp of butter. Pour the brown butter in the bowl as well. Then add the brown sugar and white sugar. Use the paddle attachment of the mixer to mix on medium. Mix for about 3-4 minutes or until the mix is light and fluffy.
• While the mixer is going, mash the banana and cinnamon together until the banana is a smooth purée. You don’t want any chunks!
• Add the banana mixture and the vanilla extract to the mixer. Mix on medium speed for another 2-3 minutes or until the banana is fully incorporated.
• While the mixer is running, whisk together the flour, cornstarch, baking powder and salt in a bowl.
• Stop the mixer and add the dry ingredients a little at a time to the dough, using a spatula to mix it in until smooth. When the dry ingredients are fully incorporated, add in the chocolate chips and mix. The dough should be fluffy.
• Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper. Use a scale to measure out nine even 4 ounce scoops of dough. Place them evenly on the baking sheet, leaving plenty of room for them to spread.
• Bake at 375F for 13-14 minutes – a trick here is to take them out when they still look slightly underdone, just trust me!
• Smack the baking sheet on the counter a few times to help flatten the cookies. This is an imperative step! They’ll come out a bit tall, but smack the sheet on the counter a few times and watch them spread like magic. Use a bowl or cup to swirl around the edges of the cookie, helping to form them into perfect circles.
• Let the cookies cool for 15 minutes before eating, then enjoy!

Looking for other cookie recipes?

Here are a few of my favorites!

Blue(berry) Cookies | Vegan & Naturally Blue!

I can confidently say these will be the best (and maybe only?) blueberry cookies you’ve ever had! They are soft in the middle, crispy on the edges, and are filled with melt-in-you-mouth goodness. This recipe uses frozen blueberries to make the cookies naturally blue, but that’s not all they do! They help make this cookie recipe vegan, sweet and filled with blueberry flavor. A total winner in my books!

Eric’s Favorite (Chocolate and Peanut Butter Marble Cookies)

These cookies have it all – brown butter, a dark chocolate side, a peanut butter side…oh and not to mention, they are HUGE. They taste like a brownie and a peanut butter cookie rolled in one. Soft in the middle, chew edges. There’s a reason they are Eric’s favorite.

Check out this recipe

Burnt Miso (Brown Butter) Dark Chocolate Chip Cookies

The name says it all, but it still doesn’t do this recipe justice. These chocolate chip cookies are filled with rich brown butter flavor, umami miso saltiness and rich dark chocolate. It’s like heaven in a bite (or five).

Check out this recipe

Why do I offer measurements in grams for this brown butter chocolate chip cookie recipe?

Baking, and bread especially, is a very finicky and exact science. The only way to ensure complete accuracy is through measuring by weight, and not volume. As much as I wish I could give you multiple ways to measure ingredients, in this recipe measuring by cups might cause some volatility and miss-matched results. I want to ensure you get the best results with this recipe (and I want to keep this recipe fool-proof!) so I highly recommend getting a small affordable kitchen scale if you want to move forward with this cookie recipe in the best way!

And that’s it for this corn gazpacho recipe!

If you make it, please tag me on Pinterest or Instagram so I can see! It’s my favorite thing to scroll through stories and see what you all are making.

And of course feel free to leave any questions, comments or reviews! This is the best place to reach me, and I’d love to hear from you.