Tomato Basil Soup

Tonight I decided to try my hand at homemade Tomato Basil Soup.  It turned out to be really REALLY good, so I thought I’d post it in case anyone else wants to give it a try.  We ate it with grilled cheeses and loved it.  But then, I could probably live off of soup-and-sandwich combos.  And meatloaf. (I’m aware that that’s weird, by the way.)

Anyway. here’s the recipe: (credit to Diane for hooking me up with it!)

• 3 tablespoons good olive oil
• 1½ cups chopped red onion (2 onions)
• 2 carrots, unpeeled and chopped
• 1 tablespoon minced garlic (3 cloves)
• 4 pounds vine-ripened tomatoes, coarsely chopped (5 large)
• 1½ teaspoons sugar
• 1 tablespoon tomato paste
• ¼ cup packed chopped fresh basil leaves
• 3 cups good chicken stock, preferably homemade
• 1 tablespoon kosher salt
• 2 teaspoons freshly ground black pepper
• ¾ cup heavy cream
• Julienned fresh basil leaves for garnish
• Parmesan toasts, optional

Heat the olive oil heat in a large, heavy-bottomed pot over medium-low heat. Add the onions and carrots and sauté for about 10 minutes, until very tender. Add the garlic and cook for 1 minute. Add the tomatoes, sugar, tomato paste, basil, chicken stock, salt, and pepper and stir well. Bring the soup to a boil, lower the heat, and simmer, uncovered, for 30 to 40 minutes, until the tomatoes are very tender.

Add the cream to the soup and process it through a food mill (or blender or mixer) into a bowl. Reheat the soup over low heat just until hot and serve with julienned basil leaves, and/or Parmesan toast

Serves 5-6

** I like my Tomato Basil Soup really smoothe and creamy, so I put it all in a food processor.  If you like it a little more coarse, just chop it instead.

Hope you enjoy it as much as we did!