Roasted Tomato Soup

Most tomato soup recipes I’ve seen call for fresh tomatoes, which is kind of strange because tomatoes are completely out of season this time of year. So I went with canned. I improvised the rest based on what was in my pantry. This soup was incredible!

Line a large rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper or a Silpat, or coat the sheet lightly with non-stick olive oil spray. Preheat oven to 375 F.

Drain most of the liquid from the tomatoes, then spread them out on the prepared baking sheet. Scatter the garlic cloves around. If using regular onion, scatter that around, too. Sprinkle generously with salt and pepper to taste, and the sugar. Drizzle with 2/3 of the olive oil.

Roast the veggies in the oven for 30 minutes, until very soft. If using scallions instead of regular onions (I did, because that’s what I had on hand), add those to the tray in the last 5 minutes of roasting. When done remove from the oven and set aside for a moment.

Heat the last 1/3 of the olive oil in a large soup pot over medium heat. Add everything from the tray, the stock, cumin and paprika. Allow to come to a gentle simmer. Add the Parmesan chunks and the bread, torn into a few pieces. Reduce heat to low, cover and cook for 20-30 minutes.

If you have an immersion blender, go ahead and puree the soup right in the pot until smooth. If not, working in batches, blend the soup (cheese, bread and all) in a regular blender then return it to the pot. Taste, and add salt, pepper and sugar, as needed. Cook a few more minutes, then serve.