Roasted Tomato and Rice Soup (adapted from Marjorie Druker’s New England Soup Factory Cookbook)
Makes 10 servings
I’ve included the directions for roasting the tomatoes; however I used garden tomatoes that I roasted and froze this summer. I also juiced some garden tomatoes and froze that. The tomato juice I get from garden tomatoes is never the homogenized consistency you get from the store bought stuff, but oh, having garden smells in January in my cold clime is glorious!
Roasted Tomatoes
12 plum tomatoes, cut into halves
3 tablespoons (45 mL) olive oil
Kosher salt
Freshly ground black pepper
Soup
3 tablespoons (45 g) butter
3 whole cloves garlic, peeled
1 large Spanish onion, peeled and diced
5 carrots, peeled and sliced
2 ribs celery, sliced
Roasted plum tomatoes (from recipe)
6 sun-dried tomatoes, packed in oil
6 cups (1.5 L) vegetable stock
3 cups (750 mL) tomato juice
2 tablespoons (30 mL) fresh basil, chopped
2 1/2 cups (465 g) cooked white rice
4 dashes Worcestershire sauce
Kosher salt
Freshly ground black pepper
For the roasted tomatoes:
Preheat the oven to 425 (218 C) degrees.
Place the tomatoes in a small roasting pan.
Toss with the olive oil, salt, and pepper.
Place in the oven and roast for 50 minutes, or until the skins look wrinkled but the tomatoes retain their shape.
For the soup:
In a stockpot melt the butter over medium-high heat.
Add the garlic, onion, carrots, and celery.
Saute for 10 minutes, stirring frequently.
Add the roasted tomatoes and continue to saute for 5 minutes.
Add the sun-dried tomatoes, stock, and tomato juice.
Bring to a boil.
Reduce the heat to medium.
Simmer, covered, for 30 minutes.
Add the basil.
Puree the soup in the pot using an immersion blender until smooth.
Add the rice and season with Worcestershire sauce, salt, and pepper.
Stir so that the rice is evenly distributed throughout the soup.
Marjorie Druker, cookbook author, says to garnish with grated cheddar and croutons because it’s a more interesting variation on tomato soup + grilled cheese combo…great idea, but I just went with the actual grilled cheese.
