Soup is such a comfort food when you are cold, sick, or just in need of a warm soothing blanket to wrap around your stomach and soul! Lately I have needed such a soup and this is one of my favorites!
When I was growing up, tomato soup meant a can of condensed cream of tomato reconstituted with milk and heated in a pan! However during one bad flu season, while living in the UK, a dear friend made me a homemade tomato soup that turned my tomato soup perception on its stalk! I could not believe this was the same soup I had grown up with and could not slurp up enough of it! I pleaded with her for the recipe. Luckily she was not a recipe hoarder and shared her secret gladly! The secret was to use tomatoes! How could I have lived 35 years and never thought to use tomatoes to make tomato soup! Since that encounter I have developed two recipes that I am sharing below! The first is a quickie when time is of the essence and the other is a slow roasted recipe when you have a bit more time on your hands! Both promise to warm your stomach, your soul, and chase away the winter bugs and blues! Slurpendous!
Quickie Tomato Soup
2 cups (16oz) 450g jarred crushed tomatoes
2 large garlic cloves crushed
3/4 cup (7oz) 200g tomato paste
1/2 cup or 1 large handful fresh basil leaves (optional)
1 1/2 cups (12 fl oz) 375ml low sodium vegetable or chicken broth
Combine the crushed tomatoes, garlic, and tomato paste in a blender with enough stock to ensure it blends completely. Place the mixture in a saucepan and heat for 10-15 minutes on high, adding more stock to make the desired soup consistency. Serve hot or warm with chopped basil to garnish.
Roasted Tomato Pesto Soup
2 large garlic cloves, crushed
6 large or 12 medium on the vine tomatoes sliced thinly
vegetable stock or water to thin
sea salt to taste
Pesto
1/4 cup (2 fl oz) 60ml extra virgin olive oil
juice of 1 lemon
1 large handful of fresh basil leaves
1 large handful of spinach or kale leaves
1/3 cup (1 1/2oz) 42g pine nuts, almonds, walnuts, or pistachios
1/2 cup (2oz) 55g grated fresh parmesan
1 garlic clove crushed
Place sliced tomatoes single layer in a roasting pan and bake at 325F (170C) for 35-45 minutes until shriveled. Place them in a blender with the garlic and enough water or stock to loosen the mixture and blend on high until smooth. Transfer to a saucepan and simmer for 15 minutes adding more stock or water to thin to soup consistency. Season with sea salt to taste. For the pesto place the oil, garlic, and lemon in the bottom of the blender and then add the basil, spinach, nuts, and parmesan on top and blend on medium until combined but still a little chunky. Serve over warm soup.
