It's Not Campbell's Tomato Soup

When I'm feeling energetic, I turn to the garden and the kitchen to have some fun. It's tomato time! Yesterday I picked about 5 pounds of tomatoes...they are finally ripening...and today I was determined to cook with some of them. I asked Sweetie what tomato dishes he likes and he said he hadn't had tomato soup for a while. That was all it took...today for lunch we had my version of fresh tomato soup.

First off I boiled a big pot of water and, four at a time, let the tomatoes blanch, then scooped them out with a slotted spoon into a colander, then ran cold water over them to stop them from cooking. The skins came right off once I removed the core at the stem end. Fresh off the vine tomatoes smell so wonderful!

Here are the peeled tomatoes, looking a little slimy.

Next I thinly sliced a couple of smallish yellow onions

and minced some garlic.

The onion was sauteed first, then the garlic added for the last minute. The tomatoes and their juices went in on top of the onion mixture. The acid in the tomatoes helped me deglaze the pan and all those browned onion bits added to the intense flavor of the soup. I used a can of low sodium chicken broth, about 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper and a tablespoon of minced fresh basil.

All of this simmered together for a few minutes. Next I took an immersion blender and blended the soup right in the pot until it was smoother. Some of the onion stayed as long strands, but I liked that, plus the occasional small chunk of fresh tomato. About 1/3 cup of cream was added and once that was just heated, I ladled it into bowls and garnished it with some more fresh basil (did I tell you that the basil is growing like weeds?) and served it up with a few crackers.

Sweetie was delighted with the fresh tomato soup. The color may have been like the Campbell's Cream of Tomato soup we remembered from childhood, but the flavor was much stronger, full of the tang of fresh tomatoes, basil and black pepper, smoothed out just a bit by the cream.

Don't wait for winter for Tomato Soup. Have some now while the tomatoes are ripe and juicy. Use the air conditioner if it is too hot for soup, but do try this recipe!

By the way, today I joined a friend and we went to see the movie Julie and Julia. If you are a food blogger you will love it! If you read food blogs you may miss the occasional nuance, but you will probably also love it. If you have always loved Julia Child as I have, you will be thrilled. If the first Julia Child recipe you ever made was Boeuf Bourguignon, which is my experience, there will be instant rapport with all three women who make it...and you'll have to see the movie to find out who the third woman is and why that is important.

I especially liked that marriage and the support of husbands was given a big part to play in this movie. Sweetie makes it possible for me to blog; by his support and encouragement, by giving me space and time to write and photograph (even as the food gets cold) and by being an enthusiastic consumer of what I cook and bake and by telling everyone about my blog. He is surely the butter on my bread.

Fresh Tomato Soup
Makes 2 generous servings

1 large or two small yellow onions, peeled, ends trimmed, halved, and thinly sliced
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 - 2 cloves of garlic, minced
2 pounds fresh tomatoes, skin removed, cored, diced, keeping juices
1 can chicken broth or 2 cups fresh chicken broth
salt and pepper to taste
1 tablespoon fresh basil, minced
1/3 cup cream or 1/2 and 1/2

basil to garnish, if desired

In a heavy bottomed saucepan, saute' the onions in the olive oil about 5 minutes, until translucent and beginning to brown. Add the garlic and saute another minute, stirring often.

Reduce the heat to medium and add the tomatoes, stirring to deglaze the pan. Add the chicken broth, salt and pepper and basil and simmer 5 minutes, uncovered.

With a stick blender, regular blender, food processor or food mill, process the soup to make it smoother. (I like mine a little chunky, so I didn't blend it totally smooth.) Return to pot (if necessary) and add the cream. Heat over low heat until heated through.

Serve in soup bowls. Garnish with a basil leaf or chopped basil, if desired.