Olive Oil, Tomato, and Basil Soup

All right, all right, I know. My blog is like, the soup chronicles these days. There has been nothing either iced or violet about it for months. I'm sorry aright! Baby hates sugar. Can't argue with baby.



At least my tummy troubles seem to have let up. At least I CAN cook now, right? No more weeks hovering under threat of 'soda cracker and peppermint tea' blog entry. It's just the sugar fetus can't take.



FINE, baby. WHATEVER. Just want you to know that you're crampin' my blog style.



But baby loves soup. Baby loves thick, hot, creamy soup down the throat that warms up the tummy, arms, legs, fingers and toes in that order. Baby loves the kind of soup that makes your body smile from the belly button out.



So it's winter, and everything is out of season, and I've been trying to work with that. Roots and lentils and sweet potatoes and delicious pig meat and such. You know, my success has been pretty good, all things considered (including a sore wrist and a dull chopping knife).





But dang you know, sometimes you need something fresh in January. Something with a little bite, a little juice. And as much as I'd like to be all new agey farmer's market shopper (I try, I really do), sometimes I'm just gonna need to eat some dang Chilean tomatoes! I don't care if they ARE chemically ripened!





I really liked this tomato soup, it did some novel things like use an ungodly amount of olive oil, and roasting the tomatoes before putting them in the soup. It really gives this soup a deeper, more complicated taste.



I served it, as all good tomato soups should be, with grilled cheese sammiches. Mine are on rye, but as long as you have quality bread any kind would probably do. Maybe not cinnamon raisin. And a salad helps lighten it up and round it out as a real meal.



Did you see my yogurt swirl garnish? Like that? Me too. I'm trying to take Anthony Bourdain's advice: "What does it take, for Chrissakes? Garnish your food! How hard is that!"



Please to enjoy this fiery-red, tangy delicious soup. And remember that winter can't last forever. And neither can pregnancy.



Olive Oil, Tomato, and Basil Soup
(adapted from Michael Chiarello's recipe)

Ingredients
4 lb fresh tomatoes
1 - 1.5 cups extra virgin olive oil
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
4 stalks celery, diced
4 small carrots, diced
4 yellow onions, diced
8 cloves garlic, minced
4 cups chicken broth
2 bay leaves
8 tablespoons butter
1 cup chopped fresh basil leaves (I used dried, but fresh would be infinitely better)
2 cups plain yogurt, optional

Directions

Preheat oven to 450 degrees F.

Chop the tomatoes and spread them onto a baking sheet, season with salt and pepper, to taste, drizzle with 1/2 cup of the olive oil and roast until caramelized, about 15 minutes.

Meanwhile, in a saucepan, heat remaining olive oil over medium-low heat. Add the celery, carrots, onions and garlic, cook until softened, about 10 minutes. Add the roasted tomatoes, chicken broth, bay leaves and butter. Simmer until vegetables are very tender, about 15 to 20 minutes. Add basil and yogurt, if using.

Puree in blender. If it is too thick, add more chicken broth or yogurt until desired consistency is reached. Serve with grilled cheese sammiches.