Sunday, July 14, 2013

Roasted Tomato Soup with Basil


I've worked on a few different approaches to tomato soup, but I think this one is a favorite. I love the flavor imparted by the roasting process, as well as the inclusion of basil. And heavy cream. You can never go wrong with heart-clogging heavy cream.

Roasted Tomato Soup with Basil

Ingredients 
2 1/2 pounds tomatoes, quartered and cored
6 cloves garlic
I medium yellow onions, sliced
1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
24 ounces chicken stock
2 bay leaves
4 tablespoons butter
1/4 cup chopped fresh basil leaves
3/4 cup heavy cream

Directions 
1) Preheat oven to 450 degrees F.

2) Spread the tomatoes, garlic cloves and onions onto a baking tray that has been covered in foil, then drizzle with 1/2 cup of olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Roast for 30 min.

3) Remove roasted tomatoes, garlic and onion from the oven and transfer to a pot. Add chicken stock, bay leaves, and butter. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer for 15 to 20 minutes.

4) Wash basil leaves and add to the pot.

5) Remove the bay leaves, then working in batches, puree the soup until smooth. As you are blending, pour a bit of cream into each blender batch, drizzling it in as the blender is running to temper the cream.

6) Return soup to pot, season to taste with salt and freshly ground black pepper.

Notes
I have been using an olive oil called Amphora and really like it. When roasting the tomatoes, it'd be interesting to experiment with different lengths of cooking time to see how a deeper roast would affect the flavor.

2 comments:

  1. I am always up for a good soup! This sounds delicious!

    ReplyDelete