Homemade Tomato Soup

I seem to be on a soup kick and loving it! Here's my homemade tomato soup recipe. I love to dip a crusty delicious truffle grilled cheese with this soup!

Ingredients:
3 lbs. of Roma tomatoes par boiled, peeled and seeded
4 cups chicken broth or vegetable broth
3 cloves of garlic minced
1 medium onion chopped
14-16 basil leaves coarsely chopped
2 tablespoons of Parmesan cheese
1/4 stick of butter
1/3 cup of whole milk
Salt & Pepper to taste
Olive oil for sauteing

To start off with, this soup has a bit of prep work but it is worth it. Firstly, time to get those tomatoes going. In a large saucepan fill it 3/4 full of water and bring to a boil. Score the bottoms of the tomatoes so that after par boiling the tomatoes the skins will peel off quickly and easily.

Once the water begins to boil, put the tomatoes into the saucepan in batches, not overcrowding. Make sure to turn them over in the water so all sides get boiled.

Let them boil for about a minute or so and when the skins begin to shrivel take them out with a slotted spoon. Allow the tomatoes to cool before peeling them. While you are letting the tomatoes cool down, chop 1 medium onion and mince 3 cloves of garlic. After the tomatoes are cool, peel the skins off and cut them in half, taking out all the seeds. Set the tomatoes to the side and get the oil heated in your soup pot on medium heat. Once it's heated toss in the onions and let them saute for 5-7 minutes.

Then drop in the minced garlic for about half a minute, letting it heat up a bit before adding the peeled and seeded tomatoes. Give the tomatoes a little time in the pot with the onions and garlic, about 2 minutes and then add in the broth, simmering for 30 minutes.

Coarsely chop the basil and pull out your food processor or blender. Once the 30 minutes are up, transfer over in batches the soup and blend, tossing in the fresh basil leaves. You can puree the soup or pulse to have a coarser consistency. Then it goes back in the pot, keeping the heat low. Add a quarter of a stick of butter , the two tablespoons of Parmesan cheese and about 1/3 a cup whole milk. Salt & Pepper to taste, then let it simmer for another ten minutes.

I like to get my grilled cheese going while the last simmering is happening, and I love to use Italian truffle cheese on a crusty sourdough bread. Top the soup off with a sprinkle of Parmesan and some shredded cheese (again, I used the truffle cheese). Dip that sandwich and enjoy!