Slow roasted Tomato and Garlic Soup with Mexican toppings
This recipe came about as I struggled with creating an elegant soup, that was hearty and filling but NOT chunky. There is a place in this world for chunky soups – most definitely, but I was determined to create a soup appetizer that would be different in it’s presentation and really comes out tops on flavour.
On a cold wintry evening, there is nothing quite so special as a well made tomato soup. I’ve tried different ways of balancing out the sharpness of fresh tomatoes and bringing out the richness in them.
Finally, I cracked it and last night, I made this wonderful soul warming soup – classy yet casual and with a real mouthwatering combination of ingredients. I refer to it as ‘Mexican’ toppings as that is exactly what the flavour reminds me of…and best of all, these are all store cupboard ingredients – so easy to make and trust me, you’ll hear all the praises! Enjoy!
- 1 tin good quality whole canned tomatoes
- 4 fresh tomatoes, cut in half
- 3 cloves garlic
- 1 tsp mixed herbs
- 3 tbs olive oil
- 1/2 cup double cream
- 1/2 chicken stock cube
- 2 tsp sugar
- 3/4 cup hot water
- 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper ( leave out if you are serving this to very young kids)
- 1/4 tsp Spanish paprika
- 1 avocado
- 1/2 tin of sweet corn
- 1/2 bunch spring onion, finely sliced
- 3/4 cup of finely grated cheddar cheese ( or any of your favourite hard cheese)
- Salt and black pepper for seasoning
- 2 red chillis finely sliced (optional for chilli loving adults!)
- Heat the grill setting in the oven to high.
- Place the tinned tomatoes and the fresh tomatoes in an oven proof dish, along with the garlic, the olive oil and the mixed herbs.
- Place in the oven for roasting for at least 35 minutes, taking care to frequently turn the tomatoes every 10 minutes or so. Once the tomatoes are roasted, ( you should have this heavenly caramelising smell in the kitchen by now!), place them in a blender with the hot water. Blend until smooth and silky.
- Place in a large saucepan and add the chicken stock cube, the sugar, the Spanish paprika, the cayenne pepper and the double cream. Check for the seasoning by making sure there is a nice balance between sweet and sour and slight depth with the paprika and cayenne.
- Boil for around 10 minutes and then switch of until you need to heat it up before serving.
- Five minutes before serving, place the sweetcorn and the spring onion in a shallow pan with a drizzle of olive oil. Season with salt and black pepper and stir fry on a medium heat for 5-6 minutes or until the spring onion has softened and the corn is nice and hot.
- Heat up the soup. If you find it has thickened too much, don’t be afraid of loosening with some hot water.
- Ladle the hot tomato soup into wide soup bowls. Sprinkle over the avocado, the corn and spring onion mix and finish with a tbs of grated cheese over the top. For adults that like their chillis, slice up the red chilli very finely and sprinkle those on last!
- Serve piping hot with some hot hot garlic bread. Mmmm – deliciousness in a bowl!