Italian Roasted Tomato & Basil Soup
Ingredients
- 3 lbs. ripe plum tomatoes, cut in half
- ¼ cup good olive oil, plus 2 tblsp.
- 1 tblsp. Kosher salt
- 1.5 tsp. fresh ground black pepper
- 2 cups chopped yellow onion
- 6 garlic cloves, minced
- 2 tblsp. Unsalted butter
- ¼ tsp. crushed red pepper flakes
- 1 (28 oz.) can plum tomatoes with juice
- 4 cups fresh basil leaves, packed
- 1 tsp. fresh thyme leaves, chopped
- 1 quart chicken or vegetable stock,
- (homemade or recommended: Kitchen Basics)
- Freshly grated parmesan, for garnish
Recipe Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
- Toss together the tomatoes, olive oil, salt and pepper.
- Spread tomatoes in for approximately 45 minutes.
- Sauté onions, garlic and red pepper flakes in a stockpot over medium heat in 2 tblsp. of olive oil, butter for about 10 minutes until the onions start to brown.
- Add the canned tomatoes, basil, thyme and chicken stock.
- Add the oven-roasted tomatoes, including the liquid on the baking sheet.
- Bring to a boil and simmer uncovered for approximately 40 minutes.
- Taste for seasonings and serve with a sprinkle of freshly grated parmesan.
- To make this soup a childhood comfort food memory grown up, serve with: Italian Grilled Cheese Sandwiches
- 1 crusty Italian bread, 12 thick slices
- 1 garlic clove
- ½ cup good olive oil
- 12 slices fresh mozzarella cheese
- 12 slices Roma tomatoes, seasoned with salt and fresh ground pepper
- 12 medium-large fresh basil leaves Warm olive oil over low heat and add garlic clove cut in half.
- Simmer for at least 10 minutes until clove is golden brown. Do not let garlic clove burn.
- Build your sandwiches with 2 slices of cheese, 2 tomatoes and 2 basil leaves.
- Brush oil over outside of each slice of bread.
- Grill both sides as you would any grilled cheese sandwich and serve with Italian Roasted Tomato Basil Soup.
