Simple tomato soup
A good tomato soup is more than tomatoes in stock: it's about slowly cooking the base (onion, garlic, tomato) and using good tomatoes. Out of season? Use tinned San Marzano. They are often better than unripe supermarket tomatoes in March.
- 3 tbsp olive oil
- 1 large onion
- 3 garlic cloves
1 Chop the onion into pieces and finely chop the garlic. Heat the oil in the Dutch oven and cook over low heat for 10 minutes until soft and glossy.
- 2 tbsp tomato purée
2 Add the tomato purée and fry for 2 minutes. This takes away the sour undertone.
- 800 g ripe tomatoes or 2 tins chopped tomatoes (800 g in total)
- 1 tsp sugar
- 1 tsp salt
3 Roughly chop fresh tomatoes. Add the tomatoes, sugar and salt.
- 800 ml vegetable stock
- 1 sprig thyme (or ½ tsp dried)
- 1 bay leaf
4 Add the stock, thyme and bay leaf. Bring to the boil and simmer gently for 20 minutes.
- 1 tbsp balsamic vinegar
- black pepper
5 Remove the thyme and bay leaf. Blend the soup smooth with a hand blender. Add the balsamic vinegar and pepper. Taste: more salt? Sugar?
- 100 ml cooking cream (optional)
6 For a creamier version: stir in the cream and warm through briefly.
- fresh basil
- a drizzle of good olive oil
7 Garnish with basil leaves and a drop of olive oil.
Ingredients
Step 1
- 3 tbsp olive oil
- 1 large onion
- 3 garlic cloves
Step 2
- 2 tbsp tomato purée
Step 3
- 800 g ripe tomatoes or 2 tins chopped tomatoes (800 g in total)
- 1 tsp sugar
- 1 tsp salt
Step 4
- 800 ml vegetable stock
- 1 sprig thyme (or ½ tsp dried)
- 1 bay leaf
Step 5
- 1 tbsp balsamic vinegar
- black pepper
Step 6
- 100 ml cooking cream (optional)
Step 7
- fresh basil
- a drizzle of good olive oil
Method
- 1 Chop the onion into pieces and finely chop the garlic. Heat the oil in the Dutch oven and cook over low heat for 10 minutes until soft and glossy.
- 2 Add the tomato purée and fry for 2 minutes. This takes away the sour undertone.
- 3 Roughly chop fresh tomatoes. Add the tomatoes, sugar and salt.
- 4 Add the stock, thyme and bay leaf. Bring to the boil and simmer gently for 20 minutes.
- 5 Remove the thyme and bay leaf. Blend the soup smooth with a hand blender. Add the balsamic vinegar and pepper. Taste: more salt? Sugar?
- 6 For a creamier version: stir in the cream and warm through briefly.
- 7 Garnish with basil leaves and a drop of olive oil.
