Summer Vegetable Gazpacho

Pour the vinegar into a small saucepan and place over low heat. Bring to a gentle simmer and cook until reduced to 1/2 cup, about 1 1/2 hours. The vinegar will have become syrupy. Remove from the heat and let cool to room temperature. Transfer the syrup to a small bowl, cover and refrigerate until ready to use. For this recipe, you will need 2 Tbs. plus more for drizzling; reserve the remainder for another use. (The balsamic syrup will keep, tightly capped, for up to 1 month.)

Peel, seed and finely chop the tomatoes and cucumber. Finely chop the onion. Seed and finely chop the bell peppers. In a large, nonreactive bowl, combine the bread slices and 1/2 cup of the tomato juice and let stand for 10 minutes. Stir in the tomatoes, cucumber, onion, yellow and red bell peppers, garlic, broth, the remaining 2 1/2 cups tomato juice, the 2 Tbs. olive oil, the 2 Tbs. balsamic syrup, the paprika and cumin, mixing well. Season with salt and pepper. Cover loosely with plastic wrap and let stand at room temperature for 1 hour to blend the flavors.

Transfer 4 cups of the tomato mixture to a blender and process until smooth. Return the pureed mixture to the bowl, stirring well. Cover and refrigerate until chilled, at least 4 hours or up to 24 hours.

When ready to serve, in a small bowl, stir together the cilantro, mint and lemon zest. Ladle the soup into chilled bowls and sprinkle each serving with an equal amount of the shredded herb mixture. Drizzle a little olive oil and balsamic syrup over each serving. Serves 6.