Tomato Soup

I was craving tomato soup the other day.  So I scoured the internet to find a suitable soup for dinner. After looking around I settled on a soup that was based on canned tomatoes.  I know, but it is winter here and the fresh tomatoes, well they suck.  This soup roasts the tomatoes to give them a little kick.  You won’t even know they came from a can.

I served this retro style with some grilled cheese.  Awesome!!

Tomato Soup – (From Michael Chiarello)

• 1 (14-ounce) can chopped tomatoes or whole tomatoes (chopped)
  
• 3/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 1 stalk celery, diced
• 1 small carrot, diced
• 1 yellow onion, diced
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 cup chicken broth
  
• 1 bay leaf
• 2 tablespoons butter
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh basil leaves
• 1/2 cup heavy cream
  

Preheat oven to 450 degrees F.

I doubled the recipe as I could not find chopped tomatoes.  So I used a 28oz can of whole tomatoes and chopped them myself.

Strain the chopped canned tomatoes, reserving the juices, and spread onto a baking sheet, season with salt and pepper, to taste, drizzle with 1/4 cup of the olive oil and roast until caramelized, about 15 minutes.

Meanwhile, in a saucepan, heat remaining olive oil over medium-low heat. Add the celery, carrot, onion and garlic, cook until softened, about 10 minutes.

Add the roasted chopped canned tomatoes, reserved tomato juices, chicken broth, bay leaf and butter.

Simmer until vegetables are very tender, about 15 to 20 minutes. Add basil and cream, if using.

Puree with a hand held immersion blender until smooth or use a blender.  Remember that if you use a blender that the mixture will expand a bit so don’t fill it all the way to the top.  I may have filled my blender a little too high as there is still some remnants of tomato soup on my ceiling.  Season with salt and pepper and serve.

I like to serve tomato soup with grilled cheese or croutons.  Either makes a great addition to this soup.

Enjoy!

-Rex