Tomato Basil Soup

I am a huge fan of soups. They are so easy to make and extremely practical.  I love making a huge pot of soup to enjoy throughout the week, allowing for stress-free nights with no extra meal planning required!  Another plus— if you don’t want to eat the same thing all week you can throw it in the freezer and save for it a later date. 

Inspired by my recent grilled cheese quest, I decided to make tomato basil soup.  A cup of tomato soup and a grilled cheese go together like peanut butter and jelly, it’s meant to be!  One of my college friends loved this pairing so much that she would make a point to eat in the dining hall on every “tomato soup day” just so she could have the mouth-watering combo. I am not sure if I have ever met anyone who was so excited to eat on campus as she was on tomato soup day.

Creamy tomato soup is obviously the best kind.  It is so rich and flavorful.  However, in the interest of my waistline (bathing suit season is on the horizon), I opted to make a tomato soup that had the creamy texture without the extra calories.  For this recipe, I traded out the heavy cream for lactose-free whole milk.  I don’t feel it compromised the rich flavor and texture one bit.  I have tried out a handful of tomato soup recipes in the past. I saw this particular recipe on Barefoot Contessa and, with a few adjustments, it has become my new favorite!  This recipe calls for carrots (weird I know) which adds a nice sweet note to the flavor palate.  Carrots also make the soup even healthier by incorporating a few more of our necessary daily vitamins.  Of course, I was also attracted to this recipe because of the basil.  With springtime officially here I am more than willing to embrace the fresh seasonal flavors!   This one-pot wonder stayed absolutely delicious from the first night of cooking until the last drop at the end of the week.

The best advice I can give to anyone making homemade soups is to have everything requiring chopping cut and ready to go before you begin the cooking process.  This makes it so much easier to transition from one step to the next.  To begin, chop the onion, carrots, tomatoes and basil.  For this recipe you don’t have to spend too much time perfecting your dicing—it’s important for the ingredients to be cut at similar sizes to ensure even cooking, however these can be roughly chopped because they will end up in the blender.

In a large pot, heat 3 tablespoons of olive oil for about 30 seconds.  Then add the carrots and red onions.  Onions make me cry so I always chop them last and get those babies into the pot as fast as I can. I have tried every onion-chopping trick in the book but despite all off my efforts, they get me every time!  Sauté the onions and carrots over medium heat for about 8-10 minutes. Once they’ve begun to soften, add 2 cloves of minced garlic and stir for about a minute, being careful not to burn the garlic.  

Next add the tomatoes, tomato paste, basil, sugar, chicken stalk, salt and pepper.  Stir all of the ingredients together, crank up the heat and bring to a boil.  Once the soup is boiling, lower the heat and allow the soup to simmer uncovered.  Simmer for about 30 minutes, until the tomatoes and carrots are tender.  When tender, add 3/4 cup of lactose-free whole milk and allow to cool for about 10 minutes.  Next, pour about 1/3 of the mixture in the blender and puree to desired texture.  Hold on tight to that lid!!  Repeat with the remaining 2/3rds until all of the soup has been pureed.  I like mine to be a little chunky to give the soup some added texture, but it can be made as smooth or as chunky as you like!  

When ready to serve, reheat the soup in a large pot.  Transfer the soup into serving bowls and (I would highly suggest) garnish with a little fresh basil!  This soup was so easy to make and even easier to clean up after because it only requires one pot!  Whipping up this recipe resulted in a simple meal-planning week and I was able to enjoy a soup that despite its simplicity was rich, creamy AND healthy.

Recipe Details:

Ingredients: 

3 tablespoons olive oil
2 medium sized red onion
2 carrots 
2 cloves minced garlic 
4 pounds vine ripened tomatoes 
1 1/2 teaspoons sugar
1 tablespoon tomato paste
1/4 cup chopped basil leaves (save a little for the garnish) 
3 cups chicken stalk
2 teaspoons salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper (more to taste)
3/4 cup lactose-free whole milk 

Chop carrots, onions, tomatoes and basil and set aside.  In a large pot heat olive oil.  Place the carrots and onions in the pot and sauté over medium heat for 8-10 minutes, until they begin to soften.  Add minced garlic and stir for about 1 minute.  Next add the sugar, tomato paste, basil, tomatoes, chicken stalk, salt and pepper.  Stir to incorporate ingredients evenly.  Bring to a boil and then reduce to a simmer over medium-low heat.  Allow to simmer uncovered for 30 minutes, until the vegetables are very tender.  Once the vegetables have softened, add the lactose free whole milk.  Stir and then transfer into the blender, blending 1/3 of the soup at a time.  Blend to desired texture.  Reheat the soup in a large pot when ready to serve.  Transfer to bowls and garnish with remaining basil!