We’re chugging our way through September but the DC weather will not relent. Every time I leave my house I look towards the heavens and scream, “Why?!” After some yelling I usually feel better. Refusing to let these high temperatures get me down, I pretended it was a cozy fall evening and made some steaming tomato soup. Part of me wanted to go through the work of roasting tomatoes and pureeing the soup, but the other part of me knows that crushed tomatoes exist. I took the road that required less effort and that has made all the different.
Tomato soup is obviously best eaten with a grilled cheese sandwich. In an attempt to lighten up the meal I cooked some rice instead. Is this as delicious as two slices of buttery bread perfectly enclosed around melted cheddar cheese? No, obviously not, but I didn’t feel like I needed to be carted around in a wheelbarrow after eating this. Plus, there must be 1 million grains of rice in my house so it was the financially savvy option.
Ingredients:
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1.5 cups chopped onion
- 2 tablespoons minced garlic
- 2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
- 2 tablespoons tomato paste
- 56 ounces crushed tomatoes
- 4 cups vegetable broth
- 1/2 cup heavy cream
- Chopped basil
Servings: Maybe 200 | Serving size: One moderate sized bowl or mug
Chop the onion into small bits because they will be floating around your otherwise smooth soup.
Ah, the conveniences of a modern world.
Action shot! Check out those begonias.
Heat up the olive oil and butter in a large pot and then add the onions. Really let those melt. Then add the garlic and red pepper flakes.
Once you are satisfied with the onion softness, work in the tomato paste.
Pour in the crushed tomatoes and vegetable broth. I added broth until the soup reached a consistency I liked. I also tasted for tomato-y-ness. This is a good time to add pepper and salt as your see fit.
Let the soup simmer and sometimes boil for 20 minutes.
Meet Artichoke, my new basil plant. I have no idea how long she will last, but the grocery store had no other basil options. Will grocery stores ever stop letting me down?
I harvested Artichoke and julienned the basil. That means I cut it into long, thin strips. If you’re above using words like julienne, just chop it up and add it to the soup.
The last step is to add some cream. Add as much or as little as you want. I don’t use cream in my average life and that’s my excuse for putting in most of the container.
Give the cream a few minutes on the heat to mingle and then you’re done! Eat this soup inside with the AC beating down upon your fragile body.
Enjoy!
