Whereas this isn’t the Smitten Kitchen’s solely tomato soup — there’s one with roasted summer time tomatoes capped with an open-faced grilled cheese sandwich within the archives, and additional again, a basic cream of tomato soup tailored from Prepare dinner’s Illustrated — neither are this: a seasonless tomato soup I could make on any wet day, together with the nonnegotaible grilled cheese sandwiches, in beneath an hour. Each of the archived recipes have their charms; the primary is nice when tomatoes are at their peak. The second is great however fussy, extra ideally suited for whenever you’ve bought the time or endurance to indicate off. However this has eclipsed each within the rotation for the final couple winters, and some issues make it excellent for us:
– Sure, grocery retailer tomatoes: Should you, like me, purchase cherry or grape tomatoes way more usually than you utilize them up, this soup is for you. No, I don’t imply wonderful, peak-season cherry tomatoes from a backyard or farm stand on a scorching summer time day; save these for snacking or a salad. I actually imply even the extremely mediocre ones you would possibly discover on sale at a sequence retailer within the useless of winter. This soup makes the argument that even bland, low season cherry and grape tomatoes will present extra taste and nuance than canned tomatoes and the proof can be within the bowl. And sweetness! Cream of tomato soup recipes add slightly sugar, however I discover that storebought grape tomatoes present sufficient with out it.
– A easy base: All the pieces else is about merely layering in taste — onions cooked in butter till candy and frivolously browned on the edges, garlic, pepper flakes to style, a splash of sherry if that’s your factor, tomato paste, and any type of broth you need to use, vegetable or hen. It simmers for quarter-hour (that is whenever you make the grilled cheese sandwiches) and blends easy.
– Cream-optional: This was supposed to be a cream of tomato soup, and you’ll, when you’d like, add cream on the finish to style. However the texture is so velvety and easy from the tomato and candy onions, you would possibly discover you don’t want or need it in any respect.
– Riffable: This isn’t simply my new weeknight tomato soup, it’s a basis I’ve used for lots of tweaked leftovers. Typically, I’ll add cooked lentils (Dealer Joe’s stay my fridge staple), however even some tortellini, and handful of spinach wilted in, plus slightly parmesan on prime work properly too. And it really works as effectively with the French onion soup-style grilled cheese on prime because the roasted tomato soup does.
Podcast! My new podcast with J. Kenji Lopez-Alt, The Recipe with Kenji and Deb, launched this previous week and our first episode is all about Stovetop Mac-and-Cheese! You may take heed to it wherever you get your podcasts and I’ve arrange a brand new podcast tab/web page the place you possibly can sustain on it right here, too. We may have new episodes each two Mondays and this tomato soup will characteristic prominently in Episode 4! We’ve been engaged on this behind the scenes for the final 12 months — I hope you get pleasure from listening alongside.
Beforehand
6 months in the past: Raspberry Streusel Muffins
1 12 months in the past: Simple Freezer Waffles
2 years in the past: Citadel Breakfast
3 12 months in the past: Rigatoni alla Vodka
4 12 months in the past: Good Vegetable Lasagna
5 12 months in the past: Bodega-Model Egg and Cheese Sandwich and Chocolate Puddle Muffins
6 years in the past: Sluggish-Roasted Candy Potatoes and Korean-Braised Brief Ribs
7 years in the past: Small-Batch Tiramisu
8 years in the past: Miso Black Sesame Caramel Corn and Sizzling and Bitter Soup
9 years in the past: Oven-Braised Beef with Tomatoes and Garlic and Pecan Sticky Buns
10 years in the past: Chocolate Hazelnut Linzer Hearts and Chocolate Peanut Butter Cheesecake
11 years in the past: Italian Stuffed Cabbage
12 years in the past: Lasagna Bolognese
13 years in the past: Blood Orange Olive Oil Cake
14 years in the past: Greatest Cocoa Brownies and Chana Masala
15 years in the past: Chocolate Whiskey and Beer Cupcakes and Crispy Black Bean Tacos with Feta and Slaw
16 years in the past: Seven-Yolk Pasta Dough and Greatest Chocolate Pudding
17 years in the past: For Beaming, Bewitching Breads