Cream of tomato soup with basil

Taken from "VEG: simple, stylish and seasonal vegetarian cooking" by Catherine Mason (Pauntley Press, 2001, ISBN: 0-9534879-2-8, price £12.99)
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I believe the tomatoes need peeling for this recipe, but I can never bring myself to de-seed them. It seems to me that most of their flavour is in the juicy flesh surrounding the seeds, and if keeping the seeds means a small compromise on texture, then so be it. If it bothers you, put the soup through a sieve.

The soup may be served hot or chilled.

• 15 g (½ oz) butter
• 3 medium sized onions, peeled and chopped
• 2-3 smallish potatoes, peeled and chopped
• 2 kg (4 lb) ripe tomatoes, peeled and chopped
• 5 cloves garlic, peeled and chopped
• 2 bay leaves
• salt and freshly ground black pepper
• bunch of fresh basil, weighing about 15 g (½ oz), washed and de-stalked
• 200 ml (6 fl oz) single cream
• milk to thin

In a large pan, melt the butter and sauté the onions gently for a few minutes, allowing them to brown just a little. Add the potatoes, tomatoes, garlic, bay leaves and 1 heaped teaspoon of salt. Bring it all to the boil, stirring, then reduce the heat, cover the pan, and simmer for about 25-30 minutes until everything is disintegrating and soft. Meanwhile put the basil leaves into the food processor bowl.

Remove the bay leaves, then process the soup with the basil leaves, until smooth. You will probably need to do this in two or three batches. Rinse out the pan then return the soup to it, stir well and re-heat. Pour in the cream and add milk to thin it to the desired consistency. Don't let it boil. Add some freshly ground black pepper, taste, and add more salt if necessary.

VARIATIONS

This soup is also nice if left chunky, in which case grate rather than chop the potato to thicken the soup.

Use fresh mint instead of basil, and serve the soup with garlic bread.

SERVES 4 FOR LUNCH, 6 AS A STARTER

Recipe copyright © 2001 Catherine Mason | other sample recipes