Homemade Tomato Basil Soup

I've always loved the classic grilled cheese & tomato soup comfort meal - so I made it with a little more sophisticated twist.

This sounds like a lot of food - but you lose a lot after straining. This recipe should make 4-5 large bowls. Recipe adapted from allrecipes.com

Ingredients:

• 8 cups chopped fresh tomatoes
• 1/3 of a large white onion
• 4 whole cloves garlic
  
• 4 cups vegetable (or chicken) broth
• 4 tablespoons butter
• 4 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons salt
• 4 teaspoons white sugar, or to taste (to cut the acidity of tomatoes)
• 2 teaspoons black pepper (or to taste)
• 4 leaves fresh basil, cut
  

Directions:

1. In a stockpot, over medium heat, combine the tomatoes, onion, garlic, and broth. Bring to a boil, and gently boil for about 20 minutes to blend all of the flavors. Remove from heat and use a hand blender to make the soup smooth. Pour through a sieve into another pot or a large mixing bowl - discard pulp.
2. In another stockpot, melt the butter over medium heat. Stir in the flour, black pepper, and dried basil to make a roux, cooking until the roux is a medium brown. Gradually whisk in a bit of the tomato mixture, so that no lumps form, then stir in the rest. Season with sugar and salt, and adjust to taste. Add fresh basil and simmer 10-15 minutes.

I served this with grilled cheese sandwiches, using fresh French bread from my Breadman bread machine! Delicious! Comfort food, all grown up :)

Soup, pre-blending:


Soup, post-blending (and straining):


Soup and Sammiches: