Garden Fresh Tomato Soup

Tomato season and the question plaguing my mind is what to do with all that deliciousness.  Thanks to the recipe my mother in law sent, I have a delicious, never eat Campbell's soup again treat. 

What you need:

Tomatoes (chop them up, don't peel or anything else)

1 onion

1 carton low sodium chicken broth

Garlic salt

2 cans Rotel Tomatos with Chilies

2 tsp butter

2 tsp flour

Balsamic Vinegar

Sugar

Tools Needed:

Large Soup Pot

Skillet

Blender or Stick Immersion Blender 

Fill your soup pot with about 12 cups of chopped tomatoes. I really didn't measure, just chopped until it was full. Add a chopped onion and half the box of chicken broth.  I let the tomatoes cook down for about 30 minutes. At this point you could transfer to a blender or food processor but I'm all for minimum clean up. I used my handy immersion blender to purée EVERYTHING (seeds included) right into the pot. 

Next I mixed up a roux to thicken the soup. In a small skillet, melt the butter and then whisk in the flour. Let it start to get bubbly. Then take one ladle of tomato soup purée and add to skillet while still whisking. When it's fully incorporated, add another ladle of purée and follow the same procedures. 

Next, begin whisking this into the pot of tomato purée. Once it is all incorporated, stir in approximately 3 TBSP of basaltic vinegar and 3 TBSP of sugar. Enjoy!

French Onion Soup

Today I cranked out one of my favorite soups for dinner. Using low sodium broth keeps the salt of a normally high meal much more manageable. 

Ingredients

Olive Oil

5 lbs Vidalia Onions, sliced

2 boxes of Swanson 50% sodium Beef Broth (approx. 8 cups)

1 cup Pinot Grigio

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 tsp Thyme

1 bay leaf

Ermenthler Cheese

In a large pot or Dutch oven, heat olive oil over medium high heat and sauté the onions for ten minutes. Then sprinkle a little sugar and continue to sauté for another 30 minutes until the onions start to carmalized. Add the garlic and sauté for a minute. Add in the wine, broth, thyme and bay leaf. Reduce heat and cook for 30 minutes more. Serve with Ermenthler (Swiss) cheese grated on to and toast in the broiler. 

We enjoyed ours with a hot roast beef sandwiches and treated it like a gourmet au jous-soup.