31 Days At The Table: Tomato Basil Soup

Hi there and welcome to Day 22 of the 31 Days At The Table.  This post is all about soup.  Or rather about one soup.  It's a pretty darned tasty soup and (of course) easy too.  The one recommendation I can make to you is to definitley go with the fresh herbs in this one, especially the basil.  It will lend a more complex flavor to your soup that the dried herbs just won't do.  Also use really good flavorful chicken stock. 

Tomato Basil Parmesan Soup

I found the recipe here

Ingredients...
2 15 oz cans of diced tomatoes
1 cup chopped onion
1 cup chopped carrot
1 cup chopped celery
1 T fresh oregano, chopped (1 t dried)
1/4 cup fresh basil, chopped (1 T dried)
1 bay leaf
4 cups good chicken broth
1/2 cup flour
1/2 cup butter
2 cups warmed half and half
1 cup shredded Parmesan cheese
1 t salt
1 t pepper

Directions...
Sautee onion, carrots, and celery in one tablespoon of olive oil over medium heat to soften. 
Throw the veggies, tomatoes and their juices, oregano, bay leaf, chicken broth in a slow cooker and cook on low for 5 hours. 

After the 5 hours, melt the butter over low heat .  Add the flour and stir continuously for 5 minutes until the roux is done.  Stir ladle-fulls of soup into the roux, stirring constently, until the roux no longer bubbles.  Pour the roux and warmed half and half back into the soup.  Using an immersion blender (or a standard blender in batches) blend the soup until smooth.  Stir in the basil, salt and pepper, and Parmesan cheese and allow to cook for another 30 minutes.  Adjust seasoning as necessary. 

Enjoy
~Lindsey

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