Homemade Tomato Soup

I’ll get back to the Christmas goodies later tonight, but for now I wanted to give you alittle something to make on those cold winter nights.

I love soup, but this was the first time I ever made homemade tomato soup. And it was sooooo yummy!

And really easy, too. Sure, it took a little longer than heating up a can of soup, but the taste was so much better. And you can tailor it for your own tastes. I put dried basil in mine, but you could try other spices, or turn up the spice a bit.

Oh, and I have a confession to make. To go along with my soup, which was delightful and yummy, I made cheese toast. With plastic, processed, nasty cheese. But y’all, that’s what I was craving. I didn’t want fancy cheese. I wanted that kind that gets all shiny when it melts, and nasty and wrinkly when you pick up the bread.

And then I guess the kitchen gods got mad at me, because look what I pulled out of the oven.

But I don’t even care. Because I made some more, and I ate it with gusto. I figure the soup balances it out, right?

Tomato Soup
(adapted from America’s Test Kitchen)

Serves: 8
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Total Time: 50 minutes

Use canned diced tomatoes packed in juice (rather than puree) for this soup; you will need some of the juice to make the soup. Serve with croutons.

Ingredients:

4 tbsp. (1/2 stick) unsalted butter
2 (28-ounce) cans diced tomatoes, drained with 3 cups of the juice reserved
1 onion, chopped fine
2 tbsp. light brown sugar
1 tbsp. tomato paste
2 tbsp. all-purpose flour
1 3/4 cups low-sodium chicken broth
1/2 cup heavy cream (or less, if desired)
Salt and pepper
Cayenne pepper
Dried Basil

Directions
1. Melt the butter in a large Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add the drained tomatoes, onion, brown sugar, and tomato paste. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the onion is softened and the tomatoes begin to caramelize, about 15 minutes.

2. Stir in the flour and cook for 1 minute. Slowely stir in the broth and the reserved tomato juice, scraping up any browned bits. Bring to a simmer, cover, and cook for 10 minutes. Puree the soup in batches in a blender (or food processor) until smooth.

(OPTIONAL STEP–I like my tomato soup really smooth, so at this point, I put the soup through a fine mesh strainer, and kind of pushed it through with a wooden spoon. That way, all of the seeds and other unpleasant textures was gone, and I could go about my anal, merry way. Of course, you can skip straight to step three)

3. Return the pureed soup to the pot and stir in the cream. I actually just poured in a few splashes of cream (probably about half of what the recipe called for–but you can use as much or as little ass you like!) Bring to a brief simmer, then remove from the heat. Season with salt, pepper, dried basil (or any dried or fresh spices you like) and cayenne to taste before serving.

To make ahead:

This soup can be prepared through step 2, cooled, covered, and refrigerated for up to 3 days or frozen for up to 2 months. Reheat over low heat before proceeding with step 3.

My New Favorite Soup

I looooooove soup. Living in snowy Colorado has only intensified my love for soup. It’s so warm and filling and makes me feel all happy on the inside.

And when I saw this recipe for a sweet potato soup with greens and sausage, I must admit I was intrigued. But Smitten Kitchen has never steered me wrong before. So, I decided to make this for a fall dinner I was going to.

My friends were skeptical when I told them what I was making. There may have even been some wrinkled noses. I didn’t even care.

And for once, I was actually organized in this whole cooking thing. The night before, I chopped up my onionsand both kinds of potatoes and put them in bags in the fridge to just dump in the pot the next day. Brilliant, I know.

Oh, and I like this picture because it makes me look like I have an alien hand.

After work on the night of the dinner, I threw the sausage in the pot, and it filled the kitchen with the best smell. I used smoked chicken sausage, but you could use whatever you like. The original recipe used chorrizo. I also used kale, but that’s because I had kale on hand. You could also use spinach.

After the sausage is cooked, drain on a paper towel. Add to the drippings the onions, spices, etc., making sure to scrape up brown bits. Then add the potatoes and chicken broth. (Exact instructions are at the bottom!)

Finally, add the kale and cook it all until everything is tender. If you use spinach, add it closer to the end, since it won’t take as long to cook as the kale. A few minutes before serving, put the sausage back in.

I don’t want to understate just how yummy this soup. One of the biggest critics even had two bowls. Her exact quote? “This is not the thing that I was expecting to like tonight.”

Job well done

Sweet Potato and Sausage Soup (Adapted from SmittenKitchen.com)

Makes 8 servings

• 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided
• 1 10- to 11-ounce fully cooked smoked chicken sausage, cut into slices, then quartered
• 2 medium onions, chopped
• 2 large garlic cloves, minced
• 2 pounds red-skinned sweet potatoes (yams; about 2 large), peeled, quartered lengthwise, cut crosswise into 1/4-inch-thick slices
• 1 pound white-skinned potatoes (2 medium), peeled, quarteredlengthwise, cut crosswise into 1/4-inch-thick slices
• 6 cups low-salt chicken broth
• 1 bunch kale, rinsed and roughly chopped
• 2 cans of white beans, drained
• cayenne pepper, to taste

Heat 2 tablespoons oil in heavy large pot over medium-high heat. Add sausage; cook until brown, stirring often, about 8 minutes. Transfer sausage to paper towels to drain.

Add onions and garlic to pot and cook until translucent, stirring often, about 5 minutes. Add all potatoes and cook until beginning to soften, stirring often, about 12 minutes.

Add broth; bring to boil, scraping up browned bits. Reduce heat to medium-low, add kale, beans, cover, and simmer until potatoes are soft, stirring occasionally, about 20 minutes.

Using potato masher, mash some of potatoes in pot. Add browned sausage to soup. Stir in remaining 1 tablespoon oil and a dash of cayenne pepper. Season with salt and pepper. Divide among bowls and serve.