Roasted Tomato and Red Pepper Soup

Sunday Soup

Another tomato soup winner! This soup is thick and full of flavor without adding any dairy; my husband will thank me for that. I love the combination of the tomatoes and the red peppers, it reminds me of a simple bruschetta. The sun-dried tomatoes also help to thicken the soup as well as add depth of flavor. If you don't have sun-dried tomatoes and don't want to fork out a ton of cash to buy them, you could make your own, as I have, or slow-roast your tomatoes. (See below)

1-2 Tbsp. olive oil
1 small onion, finely chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 tsp. red pepper flakes
1 quart jar tomatoes (whole, halved, stewed, whatever you have, or 1 28-oz can tomatoes if you don't have)
1 cup sun-dried tomatoes
2 roasted red peppers*, skins removed, roughly chopped
1 can chicken broth
1 Tbsp. brown sugar
1/4-1/2 cup fresh basil, chopped

Garnish:
fresh basil
parmesan cheese
cream or milk

Put sun-dried tomatoes in a small pot and barely cover with water. Bring to boil, reduce heat and cook about 5 minutes to rehydrate; most of the liquid should be gone. Heat olive oil in a large pot. Add onion and turn down heat to medium low and cook until just starting to brown. Add garlic and red pepper flakes and saute about a minute. Add tomatoes, peppers and chicken broth and bring to a boil. Simmer about 5 minutes. At this point, either use an immersion blender to puree soup or use a blender, pureeing in batches. Add brown sugar and basil and check for seasoning, adding more, if needed.

Ladle hot soup into bowls. If you want a more creamy soup, drizzle cream or milk into the soup and top with fresh basil and grated parmesan cheese. If you want to add cream or milk to the whole pot of soup, add about a cup.

*To roast peppers, chop peppers in half, removing stem and seeds. Place, cut side down, on a cookie sheet and put under broiler until black. Remove peppers to a bowl and either cover with a lid or with plastic wrap. Let peppers cool completely. When cool, skins should slide right off.

**To slow-roast your tomatoes, cut them in half and place on a cookie sheet. Drizzle with olive oil and salt and pepper (or even Italian seasoning if you wish). Cook on 225 degrees F for about 4 hours.

SOURCE: Adapted from Two Peas and Their Pod

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