Before the tomato reached Europe, southern Spain already had a cold soup. It is called ajoblanco, it is white, it is made from almonds and it is older than everything we know the Andalusian menu for today. Gazpacho and salmorejo came later, when the tomato and the pepper arrived from the Americas. Ajoblanco waited for nobody.

Its roots are traced to al-Andalus, between the eighth and fifteenth centuries, when grinding bread, garlic and dried fruits with water and oil was a common technique. It stayed alive in the rural parts of Malaga, Granada and Cordoba, wherever almonds were at hand. In the twentieth century came the thing it is best remembered for - muscat grapes as a garnish in the bowl.

Three cold soups, three entirely different logics. Gazpacho is tomato-based and you drink it. Salmorejo is thicker, also tomato-based, and comes with ham and egg. Ajoblanco has no tomato at all - the carrying flavour is almond, and the colour is pale, almost like cream.

For four you need: 100 grams of raw blanched almonds, 60 grams of the soft inside of day-old white bread, one clove of garlic, half a litre of cold water, 80 ml of olive oil, two tablespoons of white wine vinegar and salt. Plus grapes or melon to serve.

First the bread is soaked in cold water until it softens. Then into the blender go the almonds, the peeled garlic, the soaked bread and some of the water, until you get a fine mixture. The rest of the water is added gradually so the texture comes out silky. The oil is poured in a thin stream while the blender runs, so it emulsifies. Finally the vinegar and salt, and one more short blend.

Then comes the part that must not be cut short: at least one hour in the fridge, ideally four to twelve. This is a soup that builds itself while it sits.

A few small things separate the good version from the average one. The almonds must be raw and blanched - roasted ones bring bitterness. Only the soft inside of the bread is used, the crust goes aside. The germ is removed from the garlic, otherwise a sharp aftertaste lingers for hours. Let the oil be mild, not the most peppery one you have at home. And if you want a truly silky texture, strain the mixture through a fine sieve.

Serve it very cold but not frozen, with a few grapes or a cube of melon and a little more oil on top. That is all. Three ingredients every kitchen here already has - almonds, bread and garlic - and a technique older than the Spanish cuisine we imagine. Next time someone tells you cold soup means gazpacho, you will know that is the younger version.