Tomato Soup

I made the tomato soup today, and it was totally awesome! It had so much texture, and there was more taste than just tomato, and there was the added benefit of not tasting like a tin can. It is so good for you because it has two cloves of garlic in to fight off any sickness as well. So I am all for tomato soup instead of chicken noodle!

Homemade Tomato Soup

1 14 oz can chopped tomatoes
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
3/4 cup EVOO
1 stalk celery, diced
1 small carrot, diced
1 yellow onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 cup chicken broth
1 bay leaf
2 tablespoons butter
1/4 cup chopped fresh basil
1/2 cup heavy cream (optional)

1. Preheat the oven to 450 degrees. Strain the tomatoes, reserving the juices, and spread on a baking sheet. Season with salt and black pepper to taste, drizzle with 1/4 cup of the olive oil and roast until caramelized, about 15 minutes

2. Meanwhile, in a saucepan, heat the remaining olive oil over medium heat. Add the celery, carrot, onion, and garlic and cook until softened, about 10 minutes. Add the roasted tomatoes, reserved tomato juices, chicken broth, bay leaf, and butter. Simmer until vegetables are very tender, about 15-20 minutes.

3. Add basil and cream, if using. Remove bay leaf. Puree with a hand-held immersion blender until smooth. If you don't have an immersion blender (which I do not), cool the liquid for at least five minutes and transfer to a regular blender, filling no more than halfway. Don't seal the top-lift one corner up a little to let the steam escape, put a kitchen towel on top, pulse a few times, then blend on high until smooth.

We had mozzarella grilled cheese with our soup. The mozzarella complements the tomato so well. I did not have heavy cream so I just used a little milk, and it was fine. I also didn't have basil, and I bet it would have been even more awesome if I had the basil. I love basil! Pnut, of course, did not like her soup. She is truly her father's daughter.

In other news, we had a meeting about pursuing the house more last night. I don't know if I have written on here very much about the house. It is in Lancaster City on a little obscure street. I am just having a hard time giving up my beautiful farmland for the city. Where will the girls play? We will cross that bridge when we get to it. Anyways, we made an offer and should hear back today on whether it was accepted. If it was, we will get the inspection next. The owner has to be willing to fix all of the problems for us to buy the house because we do not have the money to fix them ourselves. We know that there is a leak either in a pipe or the roof because one of the bathroom ceiling tiles is brown and soggy. The carpet also needs restretched and tacked down because it is all bunched up in the living room. However, I want to see what is under the carpet because if there are nice wood floors, I would rather just take out the carpet. The carpet is also in the dining room. That is a no no with two small children. They make too many messes during meals. I am praying that if this is what God wants, He will make it clear, but if it is not, then He will take this house away! Oh the stress! But it would be nice to have a place of our own:)

Alright, time to work. Or maybe take a nap and then work. The girlies are asleep.

P.S. It will be much easier to make the soup if you do not have two small children trying to see what you are doing and putting their hands on the oven and tripping you as you walk around your kitchen:)