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Spicy Tomato Soup

Source of Recipe

From "Food52: Genius Recipes" by Kristen Miglore


Recipe Introduction

"You can make this spicy tomato soup from chef Barbara Lynch on a whim and eat it nearly as soon. It's also, at its core, six vegan ingredients you probably already have. It's a drinkable broth with a big personality that's especially welcome in the midst of winter, when we don't expect loud colors in our diet, or food that makes our blood run hot. The fast-paced technique is also a good break from our wintry tendencies to hunker down for long stretches in the kitchen—to cook meats until they fall apart and Crock-Pot things. It's also great with a grilled cheese. The recipe starts a bit like the old just-add-water canned tomato soup but quickly veers off and tastes like living, breathing fruit instead of tomato ghosts in corn syrup. In almost no time, you come out with a full-flavored soup, racy and pure. Lynch says the rustic pulp that's left behind after straining has no place here—you don't have to agree, or you can save the remains for crostini, pasta, or eggs."

List of Ingredients

â—¦ 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
â—¦ 1 small yellow onion, peeled, halved, and sliced into ¼-inch thick slices
â—¦ 1 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes (or start with ½ teaspoon)
â—¦ 2 (28-ounce) cans whole tomatoes
â—¦ 1 ½ cups water
â—¦ ¼ cup loosely packed fresh basil leaves
â—¦ Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
â—¦ Crème fraîche


Recipe

Heat the olive oil in a large saucepan over medium heat until shimmering. Add the onion and red pepper flakes and cook, stirring occasionally, until the onions are translucent and very tender, about 10 minutes.

Stir in the tomatoes and their juices, plus the water, and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to low and simmer, stirring occasionally, until the flavors have melded, about 30 minutes. (If you're in a hurry, you can skip the simmer time—just add a bit less water.) Add the basil, season with salt and pepper, remove from the heat, and let cool briefly, about 5 minutes.

Set a fine-mesh strainer over a large, heatproof bowl. Using a blender, purée the soup in batches until smooth, removing the small cap from the blender lid (the pour lid) and covering the space with a kitchen towel (this allows steam from the hot soup to escape and prevents the blender lid from popping off). Pour the blended soup through the strainer, pressing on the solids with a rubber spatula or ladle; discard the solids. Taste the soup and season with additional salt and pepper as needed.

Return the soup to the saucepan and reheat on medium-low until hot. If you choose, serve topped with a tablespoon of crème fraîche.

Serves 6