One of my guilty pleasures in life is, or should I say was, a can of super sweet Heinz tomato soup, but since the recent backlash against all things sugary, I’ve gone off the idea, especially after reading on the back of the can exactly how much of the bad white stuff there is in there (equivalent to 4 teaspoons). The kids absolutely love tomato soup, so I decided to make my own, which I’ve never done before would you believe? I’ve slow roasted tomatoes loads of times but never thought of turning them into a soup. I roast on a low heat for 3 hours with nothing more than a little olive oil and salt, which almost makes them semi dried, but still juicy and really sweet. They are amazing. Even if you can’t be bothered to go the whole hog and make a soup, try slow roasting good tommies like this and enjoy them as a snack; or with some lovely torn mozzarella and some pine nuts; or tossed into spaghetti with some parmesan and fresh basil – always with lots of extra virgin olive oil on top, whichever way you have them!
This soup is a great way of getting all the goodness of tomatoes into my son, who is very clear about the fact that he doesn’t like fresh tomatoes, only when they are cooked, i.e. in a pasta sauce or like this. Both children blooming wolfed this soup down like nobody’s business, as did Adam. To serve, I crumbled some white cheese in (Peakland white with sun dried tomatoes and garlic) and served it with ultra quick garlic bread (good quality bread, sliced, toasted then rubbed with a raw clove of garlic and drizzled with oil, then sprinkled with salt). It has nothing in it aside from tomatoes, olive oil, garlic and a little water, so you could fill your boots and feel rather good about it. Just a thought – this soup would be divine with a freshly poached egg served in the middle too… Last thing – this would be a lovely starter to make when entertaining, do it the day before as it’s perfect the next day.
Serves: 4 adults
Prep time: 10 minutes
Cook time: 3 hours (if roasting toms and making sauce simultaneously / 4 1/2 hours if not)
Total time: 3 hours 10 minutes (or 4 hours 40 minutes)
Ingredients:
Roasted tomatoes:
Approx 17 good quality vine tomatoes, sliced in half
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
Salt
For the soup:
2 tins of good quality chopped tomatoes
5 cloves of garlic, chopped roughly
1/2 tin of water
2 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil
Instructions:
- Preheat oven to 140C. Arrange your halved tomatoes on greaseproof paper, brushed with oil on either side and sprinkled with a little salt. Roast for 3 hours. Enjoy as is or make the soup…
- Simultaneously, heat some olive oil over a medium heat. Add your garlic to the pan, stirring. After a short while, as it only just begins to brown (only a minute or so) tip in your tomatoes and water. Stir well and either cook on a low heat with the lid on in the oven (the same heat as the tomatoes will be fine) or on the hob for 1 1/2 hours.
- When the tomatoes are roasted and the base of the soup is made, whizz it all together in a blender and season as you see fit with salt and pepper. Serve with lots of extra virgin olive oil on top and revel in smugness as your children cover themselves in tomatoey goodness!
Hello, I came upon your blog while searching for healthy family food blogs for inspiration. I am so glad I did. This tomato soup recipe is just the thing I have been looking for. I make a lot of soup (usually with a lot of butternut squash and sweet potato) but I have never been brave enough to try tomato even though I love it. I will be putting this on the menu for this week. So simple and looks absolutely delicious. Thank you, I look forward to delving into more of your recipes.
Thank you so much for your kind words, they mean a lot! Yes this soup is really good. It is strange but I had never made tommie soup either before this recipe – it seems obvious but actually it's not an easy soup to get right. This recipe is really easy and works so well though. Keep reading and commenting, I welcome all feedback! Rachel x
I've been trying to eat a lot healthier recently, and this recipe looks wonderfully tasty! Heading to the shops tomorrow so I'll make sure to pick up some extra tomatoes. Thank you. 🙂
Good to know I am influencing someone's shopping list! : )