Creamy Roasted Tomato Basil Soup
This is a soup inspired by Ina Garten's Roasted Tomato Basil Soup. It is bright, flavorful and satisfying. For the perfect winter time lunch, serve it with a crunchy/gooey Sharp Cheddar and Prosciutto Panini OR make up a batch of fluffy popovers to serve alongside as a first course.
Servings 8
Equipment
- Food mill fitted with coarsest blade
Ingredients
- 3 lbs ripe plum tomatoes cut in half lengthwise
- ¼ cup plus 2 Tbsp olive oil divided
- 1 tbsp Crystal Diamond Kosher salt
- 1 tsp freshly ground black pepper
- 1 large yellow onion chopped
- 6 cloves garlic minced
- 2 tbsp unsalted butter
- ¼ tsp crushed red pepper flakes
- 1 28-oz canned plum tomatoes with their juice
- 2 cups fresh basil leaves roughly chopped
- ⅛ cup dried basil leaves
- 1 tsp fresh thyme leaves
- 1 quart chicken stock
- ½-1 cup heavy cream
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400° F. Lay tomatoes cut side up in a single layer on a rimmed baking sheet. Drizzle ¼ cup olive oil evenly over each tomato and sprinkle with salt and black pepper. Roast for 45 minutes.
- Put 2 tbsp olive oil and 2 tbsp unsalted butter into a large stockpot over medium high heat. Add onions, garlic, crushed red pepper flakes and sauté for about 10 minutes, until the onions are translucent and begin to brown.
- Add the canned tomatoes with their juices, fresh and dried basil, fresh thyme, chicken stock and the roasted tomatoes with all the liquid on the baking sheet. Simmer uncovered for 40 minutes and pass through a food mill fitted with the coarsest blade. Add cream and adjust seasoning to taste.
Notes
You can use a blender or stick immersion blender to purée this soup, but the food mill creates a wonderful and even consistency and texture that takes it from good to gorgeous.