Roasted Tomato Soup

Total Time: 1 hr Preparation Time: 30 mins Cook Time: 30 mins

Ingredients

• Servings: 8
• 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
• 3 lbs large ripe tomatoes, cut in half crosswise
• 6 medium bell peppers, cut in half crosswise,ribs and seeds removed
• 2 medium vidalia onions, cut in half crosswise and peeled
• 2 stalks celery, chopped (no leaves)
• 4 cloves garlic, peeled and finely chopped
• 1/2 teaspoon sodium-free seasoning (or to taste)
• 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper (or to taste)
• 2 tablespoons sun-dried tomato paste
• 1 tablespoon tomato paste
• 4 teaspoons chopped fresh basil
• 4 teaspoons chopped chives
• 4 teaspoons chopped oregano (if substituting dried herbs, use 1 teaspoon each)
• 1 quart homemade chicken broth or 1 quart store bought low sodium chicken broth

Recipe

• 1 in a bowl, toss together tomatoes, peppers, onions, celery, and garlic.
• 2 add pepper and salt-free seasoning to taste (add salt at when indicated, as it brings out the moisture).
• 3 place on a baking sheet.
• 4 preheat oven to 400°.
• 5 roast until they start caramelizing and become soft, about 25 minutes.
• 6 cool, then discard the peels and seeds.
• 7 place the mixture in a food processor or blender with some of the chicken broth and pulse the purée to desired thickness.
• 8 in a soup pot, combine the purée with the remaining chicken broth, sun dried tomato paste, tomato paste and cayenne pepper.
• 9 add half of the fresh herbs (if using dried herbs, add them all at this stage) and cook, stirring often, until just simmering.
• 10 season to taste with salt and pepper.
• 11 ladle the soup into bowls, sprinkling each serving with the rest of the fresh herbs.
• 12 garnish with fresh or thawed frozen corn niblets, some fresh basil, cornbread crumble, thinly sliced artichokes or whatever garnish you like.