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Tomatoes,
America's favorite "vegetable," are the fruit of a
South American vine. They were not well accepted at first, as
the tomato was thought to be a poisonous member of the deadly
nightshade family. Tomatoes contain lycopene, the most
protective antioxidant of all carotenoids. That is what gives
tomatoes their red color. Oil helps the absorption of lycopene
and tomatoes that have been heat-processed are the most healthy.
Stewed canned tomatoes work well in this recipe. This soup is
lost without grilled cheese sandwiches.
1 cup chopped yellow onion
¼ cup
butter
3 cups
hot water
1
tablespoon chicken base
¼ cup
all-purpose flour
2 (14
½-ounce) Italian-style tomatoes, undrained
1
(6-ounce) can Italian tomato paste
1
dried bay leaf
1 ½
teaspoons granulated sugar
1 ½
teaspoons garlic salt
⅛
teaspoon freshly ground Tellicherry peppercorns
⅓
cup whipping cream
1.
In a 5-quart nonstick sauté pan, fry the onions in the
butter
over
medium heat until translucent.
2. Stir the chicken
base into the hot water.
3. Remove the pan
from the heat and sprinkle onions with flour.
4. Whisk
well, then add the chicken stock. Cook 1 minute or
until
smooth.
5. Add the
undrained tomatoes, tomato paste, bay leaf, sugar,
garlic
salt and pepper. Use a potato masher to mash 1 minute.
6. Simmer the soup
for 15 minutes, then pour into a large sieve
set
over a glass bowl. Press the tomatoes with the back of a
wooden
spoon for one minute. Discard skins and onions.
Stir
the whipping cream into the soup.
7. Serve soup in
bowls, decorated with more whipping cream
piped
in a swirl. To make a flower pattern, alternately pull a
toothpick
in and out of the cream swirl. Garnish with fresh
basil
in the middle of the cream flower if desired.
Makes 4 side soup servings
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