Roasted Tomato Soup

 

Roasted Tomato Soup.  Nothing is more delicious than a fabulous soup made from fresh ripe vine tomatoes tomatoes roasted in the oven with plenty of herbs and garlic.

Several weeks in a row my sister and I were lucky enough to score two very large boxes of fresh vine-ripened tomatoes at the shops. Normally I would not get so excited about seeing tomatoes out of season, but these looked beautiful and the price was right.

They were only $4.99 for about 6 pounds of them. An amazing value, and what is wonderful about tomatoes is that they keep ripening so long as you keep them out on the counter.

The first bunch we enjoyed in tomato sandwiches and bacon and tomato sandwiches.  And then the next week they had them marked down to $3.99 for the box and we bought some more to use in a soup and more sandwiches.

Yes, we love tomatoes.

I was recently gifted with a knife by the people at Tuo Cutlery. A beautiful 8-inch chef's knife from their Legacy collection.  As you know I have just made the big move back to Canada and am starting all over again from scratch.

This gift could not have come at a better time.  Starting again with nothing, this knife is coming in very handy.  I am not in my own place yet, but it is still coming in handy My sister is still using the knives my mother bought in 1954 and I can tell you right now they are less than ideal. In fact I find them downright dangerous.

One of the most dangerous tools in the kitchen is a dull knife!  

 

I have spent the last week putting this fabulous knife through it's paces, and trust me I know knives. When I was in culinary school my professor told me I had excellent knife skills.  I felt good about that.

One of my favorite knives to use has always been the 8-inch chef's knife, and this one is really nice. Created from precision-forged German carbon steel, with a razor sharp edge and polished satin finish blade. It is cutting through things quite easily like a hot knife through butter.

 

It has a beautiful handle with a full tang as well as rivets.  I also really like the weight and heft of it. In other words it feels nice and comfortable in my hands, which is really important when it comes to knives.  You want it to feel comfortable and easy to use.  This is both.

Its also a really pretty knife.  I love the rose pattern on the center rivet, but then I have always loved pretty things.

 

I just really, really love it.  If you look at their site, you will see that they have a wide variety of knives, most at very reasonable prices.  There are 10 different collections to choose from.

Available as single knives or collections, as well as knife blocks.  Nice. Nice.

I am well pleased to be able to start off my Canadian collection with this beautiful knife.

 

This delicious soup begins with roasted fresh tomatoes and garlic.  The knife cut through the tomatoes with the greatest of ease.  I was well impressed.

The tomatoes are roasted in a moderate to high oven with an abundance of whole, unpeeled garlic cloves. Don't fret about the amount of garlic.  Roasting really mellows out the flavor of garlic. and you will find that this is just the right amount. 

You need nothing more than a good olive oil and some seasoning on them to roast them.

 

While the tomatoes and garlic are roasting you chop and sauté a whole onion along with some dried herbs in a tiny bit more olive oil.

Oregano and basil to be precise.  You don't want the onions to brown so make sure  you stir them frequently and keep an eye on them.

 

Once they are meltingly tender you add some balsamic vinegar.  Let that bubble up, deglazing the pan, and then reduce it to half the amount.  

Balsamic vinegar is such a wonderful addition to a tomato soup, don't you think? Reducing it really emphasizes the rich flavor of it.

Make sure you use a really good one, not the best of course, but a reasonably priced medium quality one.  Always save the best for enjoying on its own with perhaps some good parmesan and crusty bread.

 

Once that is done, you add some vegetable stock and a sprig of thyme and simmer it all together until the flavors are well melded, ready to add the roasted tomatoes and garlic to.  (Yes, you do squeeze the roasted garlic from the skins, discarding the skins!)

Blitz it until smooth, and then add a quantity of fresh basil and some cream and blitz again. Mmmm . . .  gorgeous.

 

Of course we are real creatures of habit and enjoyed our soup with some toasty grilled cheese sandwiches.  All crisp and gilded buttery golden brown . . . 

Two kinds of cheese oozing out of the middles.  Rustic toasty bread and oozy cheddar and swiss. Delicious!  Perfect for dipping into that lush rich full bodied soup.

I served it garnished with some more basil leaves for a bit of color and it all went down a real treat. Tomato soup and grilled cheese.  What more could you want for supper on a chilly damp day? 

Thank you so very much to Tuo for sending me this knife to use. It could not have come at a better time and is destined to become a much valued part of my new kitchen once it is set up.

Do be sure to check them out on their website.  Tuo is committed to exploring exquisite production techniques, precision experienced craftmanship and premium raw materials at an affordable price.  Thank you so much!

Roasted Tomato Soup

Yield: 6

Author: Marie Rayner

Prep time: 10 MinCook time: 1 H & 10 MTotal time: 1 H & 20 M

This delicious tomato soup is created by roasting fresh tomatoes and garlic together, before adding to caramelized onions, a bit of balsamic, some good stock and fresh herbs. Blitzed until smooth, it always goes down a real treat.

Ingredients

• 4 pounds ripened vine tomatoes, quartered
• 1 head of fresh garlic, broken down into cloves, peels left on
• 1/4 cup (60ml) +1 TBS olive oil
• 1 tsp fine sea salt
• freshly ground black pepper
• 1 medium onion, peeled and diced
• 1 tsp dried basil
• 1/2 tsp dried oregano
• 2 TBS good balsamic vinegar
• 4 cups (960ml) vegetable stock
• 1 sprig of fresh thyme
• 1/4 cup (60ml) heavy cream
• a small handful of fresh basil leaves, plus more to garnish

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 400*F/200*C/gas mark 6.  Line a large baking sheet with some baking parchment. Set aside.
2. Remove the stems from the tomatoes, wash and cut into quarters. Spread out on the baking sheet.  Add the un-peeled cloves of garlic, scattering them amongst the tomatoes.  Drizzle the 1/4 cup (60ml) of olive oil over top and season with the salt and pepper. 
3. Toss to coat completely with the oil and seasonings.  Spread out again and then place into the preheated oven to roast for one hour. The tomatoes should be soft and beginning to caramelize on the edges by then.
4. While the tomatoes and garlic are roasting, heat the remaining TBS of oil in a large saucepan. Add the onions to the oil and sauté without coloring until soft.  Sprinkle with the dried oregano and basil.  Cook, stirring, until fragrant.  
5. Add the balsamic vinegar.  Allow it to bubble up and then simmer until it reduces by half. 
6. Add the vegetable stock and the sprig of thyme.  Bring to the boil, then reduce to a low simmer and simmer for 10 to 15 minutes to blend all the flavors.  Fish out the stalk of thyme and discard.
7. Remove from the heat.
8. Once the tomatoes have roasted remove them from the oven and add the tomatoes to the stock mixture in the pan.  Squeeze the cloves of garlic from their skins and add to the pan as well.
9. Using an immersion blender blitz until smooth.  Add the cream and fresh basil and blitz again to combine.
10. Reheat gently.  Serve immediately garnished with more basil.

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Note - I was gifted with this knife for review purposes. I was not required to write a positive review in return. Any and all opinions are my own.

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