Tomato Soup

I have always wanted to make tomato soup...so I did. I didn't want it to be a very time consuming event, or to have to buy many additional ingredients, so I used this recipe for Simple Tomato Soup and it was super easy and quick. The recipe is so basic and neutral that I am sure much can be done with it, so I am especially excited to make it again, when I have more time and money. The resulting soup tastes like you'd expect...like tomatoes. I love tomatoes and I loved this soup.

I used grape tomatoes, because they were on sale for $0.79 per pint (!), along with a couple dehydrated tomatoes I had lying around. I added an extra clove of garlic, simply because I had 3 loose in my cupboards, and a bit of curry powder for spice–I was not in the mood for anything like cumin or basil, and I remembered how much I loved it in the Spiced Apple & Sweet Potato Soup. Finally, I topped my individual portion with a little bit of goat cheese, my most loved of the cheeses. As usual, I weighed most of my ingredients as I went, so I'll include the resulting measurements (just guides, really...for record keeping's sake).

Simple Tomato Soup
(from The Road to the Farm's Simple Tomato Soup)
Makes about 5 cups

Ingredients:

• 1-2 Tbsp olive oil
• 1 (375 grams) medium sized onion, diced
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 quart (2 pints...which ended up collectively weighing 595 grams) tomatoes, any kind, diced or whole (I also threw in some dehydrated tomatoes)
• 3 cups Vegetable Broth
• 1 tsp curry powder (optional)
• Salt and pepper to taste, along with any spices/toppings that strike your fancy (the original recommends paprika, cumin, cayenne, basil, etc...I added a bit of goat cheese to mine)

Instructions:
1. Prepare your vegetables (gather, dice and mince)
2. In a large saucepan, heat oil over medium heat, then add onions and garlic. Cook until slightly caramelized, or about 10 minutes.
3. Add tomatoes and about a cup of broth, then transfer to a blender and puree until desired constancy (you know...smooth versus chunky).
4. Return to saucepan and stir in remaining broth. Simmer for about 10 minutes, or longer.
5. Add spices, salt, pepper and any other topping that appeals.