Soup and hot summer weather never seemed like a good combo to me—until I met gazpacho, of course. Throw in the sudden onslaught of tomatoes from a typical summer garden and it almost becomes an imperative. Gazpacho actually appears in texts dating back to Greece and Rome. Claims for the origin of the word itself vary, but all theories seem to indicate a reference to “pieces,” as in chunks of bread. “Gazpacho was originally any gruel or soup with old bread, olive oil, and sour wine,” says María Llamas, owner and manager of the distinguished Alambique cooking school in Madrid, Spain. “Roman legions used to march on it. At the time it had no tomatoes, probably a few herbs to flavor. It really became super popular when tomatoes were incorporated.” As we’ve seen in other dishes, the main ingredients of the modern dish are recent arrivals to Europe, historically speaking. …