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Old February 11, 2006   #5
Suze
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Join Date: Jan 2006
Location: Texas
Posts: 3,027
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My Tomato Basil Soup

about 4 cups canned crushed tomatoes (solids)*
about 2 cups tomato juice (reserved from above)*
1 14-16 oz. can chicken broth
12 or so large sweet basil leaves or equivalent
1 cup half and half
5-8 tablespoons real butter
salt to taste
two generous dashes worcestershire sauce
juice of 1/2-1 lemon

*Note: Exact proportions aren't crucial here, as long as much of the 6 cups of tomato are solids. For example, you wouldn't want to use just tomato juice; the texture just wouldn't be there. I made this using a quart jar of my own home canned tomatoes (Anna Russian put up halved) plus one 16 oz jar of canned whole plum tomatoes packed in tomato juice from the grocery. I fished out the tomatoes from the liquid and hand crushed them into a pot until I had 4 cups worth, which was the amount I was initially looking for. I then used the reserved liquid/juice (2 cups), and a can of chicken broth for the base. This seemed to work perfectly.

Also, many similar recipes call for heavy cream and an entire stick of butter (8 T). I added 5 T and felt that tastewise, it was more than sufficient. Same with the heavy cream; I used half and half instead. The soup was incredibly rich.

I used the juice of an entire lemon, but the soup was on the tart side (which I like). I'd recommend adding juice of half a lemon first, then increasing to taste.

This ended up being much better than La Madeline soup, just fabulous. I was amazed at how good it was, and it's pretty easy to make.

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Instructions:
Tear/chop basil leaves into smaller pieces, and simmer crushed tomatoes, tomato juice, chicken broth, and basil over heat for 30 min. Allow to cool a bit, then puree mixture in small batches in blender/food processor until smooth textured.

Return to saucepan and add remaining ingredients, then stir over low heat until butter is melted and soup is warm. Don't boil vigorously or overheat.

Add crushed pepper to taste, then garnish with basil leaves and serve with your favorite bread.
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