Tomato soup

Squizzing the weather outside, it's quite apt that my first official recipe post is about soup, tomato 🍅 soup to be exact, it's probably my favorite soup and this recipe is the result of loads of trying and testing and (the best part) tasting. In the end I whittled it down to the most basic of ingredients and by giving them some love and heat, I encourage them to give their best.

An appropriate hashtag will be #keepitsimplestupid

My advice with this recipe, and any new recipe you try, is to give the recipe a try as is and then, should you decide to make it again, make adjustments to suit your taste.

My love for tomato soup started many years ago, 34 to be exact. We were visiting aunt Joyce and uncle Peter in Port Elisabeth and Talana, the grey beard's cousin, took us to a little Italian restaurant and I had the tomato soup. It was the first time I had freshly made, cooked from scratch tomato soup and it was love at first bite! I've never tasted anything quite like it since, perhaps it was the ambiance, the company and the wine that made it so extraordinary, I'll never know but through trial and error this soup comes very close!

So here is my latest and I must admit my most yumm version of Tamato soup:

First you roast the tomatoes

Then you fry the garlic & tomato paste

Then you add the roast tomatoes, can tomatoes, fresh basil and other dry stuffs

Add the water

Simmer and then blitz until smooth

My favorite Tomato Soup:

Ingredients:

Part 1

1kg Tomatoes

10ml Sugar

5ml Salt

5ml ground Black Pepper

5ml dried Oregano

15ml Olive oil

Part 2

25ml Olive oil

2 large cloves of Garlic

30ml Tomato Paste

1 punnet fresh Basil

5ml Allspice

5ml Black pepper

5ml Salt

10ml Sugar

1 can chopped Tomatoes

1 stock cube (chicken or vegetable)

1lt Water

Method:

Preheat the oven to 200°C

Part 1-

Quarter the tomatoes and place in a single layer on a baking sheet.

Season with the salt, pepper, oregano, sugar and olive oil.

Mix to ensure all the tomatoes are loved.

Place in the oven and roast for about 20 minutes until the tomatoes are starting to 'collapse' and they skins are browning in places.

Part 2-

While the tomatoes are roasting peel and roughly chop the garlic.

Roughly chop the basil leaves and stems (the stems have so much flavour)

Heat the oil on medium heat in your soup pot, add the garlic and fry for a few seconds, add the tomato paste and stir until the oil turns red. Add the can of chopped tomatoes, basil, allspice, salt, pepper & sugar. Stir to combine.

Turn the heat off until the roasting tomatoes are ready.

Once ready, turn the heat up to high and add the roasted tomatoes to the rest of ingredients in the pot with all the juices an pan bits.

Add the stock cube and all the water.

Stir to mix.

Bring to the boil then turn the heat down to a good simmer and cook for 35 minutes.

Remove from the heat and blend until smooth.

Taste for seasoning and add salt, pepper and/or sugar to taste.

Simmer for another 5 minutes and serve warm.

Notes:

• Good simmer = not a mad boil nor a puny little plop just a lekker beep, bop, plop (if you know what I mean)

• Additional sugar at the end = how much, if at all, extra sugar you might need at the end, depends on the ripeness of the tomatoes, the soup mustn't be sour but must still have some of that traditional tomato zippiness.

• As with most soups, this one freezes very well so make a lot and freeze.