Quick Tomato Soup

photography Amy Albertson

Every blender has a removable middle.

You remove it to blend hot liquids (soups or sauces)

or you remove it to add oil in a stream to a vinaigrette.

photography Amy Albertson

Removing the small middle cap from the lid of the blender

photography Amy Albertson

This is not actually the tomato soup.  This is Enchilda Sauce in a blender which is why it is so dark.  This is not the tomato soup.   I'm just trying to show the technique of how to blend hot liquids in a blender.  I also use an immersion or stick blender because then you don't have to mess with getting another item dirty. This demonstrates how to hold a kitchen towel over the hole in the lidto let the hot steam escape from the blender. Ifyou leave the middle cap on, the heat can't escape and thesauce or soup will "blow up" all over your kitchen!

This is a quick version of tomato soup for those of you who don't have time to make the oven roasted tomatoes. This version used two cans of diced tomatoes. My friend, Mary, recommended Muir Glen. Others have recommended San Marzano tomatoes.  My new favorite is Trader Joe's Organic Diced Tomatoes.  

I've posted pictures of how to blend hot liquids by removing the middle cap. You can also use and emersion blender if you have one of those or blend in batches in a food processor. If you don't remove this lid and blend hot liquids the heat makes pressure build-up and the lid will fly off and everything inside will hit the ceiling and counter tops. We learned this the hard way in Hawaii when I was making Plum Sauce for my Goddaughter, Jacklyn's, Baptism. I'd always made plum sauce with an emersion blender so it was my first time with a regular blender and it went all over Monica's ceiling and kitchen.

If you add the optional 1 cup of milk at the end of the recipe, it will become 2 points per serving. If you leave the milk out it is one point per serving.

I served this tomato soup with cheese toast and a shaved fennel salad. You can also add fennel to the soup with the onion (1 cup diced) if you wish. I just know fennel is more challenging ingredient to get for some and I wanted to keep this recipe simple. It is also better with fresh basil but if you are trying to work from staples in your kitchen then you can substitute dried. And I realize I'm putting red pepper flakes or some kind of heat in quite a lot of my recipes. The heat seems to make them more filling, satisfying and flavorful and doesn't add any extra calories.

Quick Tomato Soup

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 yellow onion diced (about 1 cup)

2 cloves of garlic, minced

pinch of salt to put on onions while sauteeing

water to add to onions while sauteeing

2 14.5 ounce cans diced tomatoes

1 cup vegetable broth or chicken broth

1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes

1 tablespoon tomato paste

1/3 cup packed fresh basil leaves, chopped (or 1 teaspoon dried)

1/4 teaspoon kosher salt (or more depending on how salty the broth is)

1 cup 2% milk, optional (this will add an additional point per serving)

Add oil to a hot soup pot. Add onions and garlic and stir. Sprinkle onions with a pinch of salt. If they are cooking too quickly (i.e. browning too quickly) then add 1/3 of a cup of water until it evaporates. You can add water two or three times if you need to.

When onions are soft and carmelized (about 8 to 10 minutes) add the remaining ingredients except the milk. Place onions and all of added ingredients in a blender (remove middle cap of blender if liquid is hot.) Blend well. Add back to pot and cook for 4 or 5 more minutes. Add milk if you wish and cook for 1 more minute.

Makes 4 1-cup servings without milk. Makes 5 1-cup servings with milk. 

Serve with cheese toast and fennel arugula salad or parsley basil salad. Or serve with the Orzo Mac and Cheese.