Roast Tomato & Basil Soup
Everywhere I look lately I see tomato soup recipes and photo’s. This might be the reason why I was so amped to make it last week, and why my husband was so surprised to find out that I’d never made or eaten tomato soup before. I think it’s the fact that in our high school Home Economics class, the teacher always said you can’t make tomato soup in certain pots, I think it was Aluminium, because the acid in the tomatoes react with the Aluminium and this gives the soup a metallic taste. The thought of that petrified me and I was always too scared to make it. Meanwhile, we only had cast-iron and stainless steel pots and pans at home so I had no reason to really be scared of attempting this soup.
I was also nervous that my soup would taste like Marinara sauce or ketchup…I mean I love both, but I don’t want to dig into a whole bowl of it. So it took a lot of careful seasoning and tweaking to get the flavours to just where I want it. I think using Balsamic Vinegar to roast the tomatoes in made a big difference and gave the soup a lovely rich quality. Also, I used a bit of soy sauce to add body and depth to the soup. There is just nothing like soy sauce when you want richness to something. I didn’t add enough for you to really taste there was soy sauce in the soup, just enough to add the lovely savoriness I wanted from it.
The end result was a soup with a bit of sweetness, saltiness and just the right amount of acidity. It was delicious with the rustic green olive bread I served it with and please excuse the excessive use of cream and balsamic vinegar on top of the soup. I am obsessed with drizzles and swirls, but I am trying to work on this problem, I promise!
Serves 6-8
4 tins (400g each) whole, peeled tomatoes
2 tbsp balsamic vinegar
2 tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp sugar
1 tsp salt
2 red onions, finely chopped
2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
2 tsp tomato paste
2 tbsp soy sauce
1 tbsp sugar
1.5l vegetable / chicken stock
100ml cream
salt & pepper to taste
fresh basil leaves, to serve
- Pre-heat the oven to 200°c.
- Place the tinned tomatoes and all their juices in a roasting tray and add the Balsamic, olive oil, sugar and salt. Stir to combine and place in the oven for 25-30 minutes until the tomatoes are broken down and have started caramelising slightly.
- In a large pot, sauté the onions in some olive oil until they are translucent and fragrant. Add the garlic and fry for another minute.
- Add the roasted tomatoes, tomato paste, soy sauce and sugar. Stir to combine all the ingredients and pour in the stock.
- Lower the heat and cover the pot. Allow to simmer for 10 minutes.
- Remove the pot from the heat and blend the soup.
- Add the cream and season to taste.
- Serve with fresh basil leaves and crusty bread.