Farmer's Market Creamy Tomato Soup

The weather was so beautiful this weekend when the husband and I walked down to the 14th and U Street Farmer's Market to reserve our Thanksgiving turkey. As always we found some incredibly delicious, fresh and locally grown vegetables. I was surprised that we even found some pretty good looking tomatoes this late in the season. The vendor was giving out free recipes so I picked up one for Creamy Tomato Soup. I made if for dinner Saturday night and it was super delicious. Luckily we had also picked up a fresh baguette to serve with it. Here's the recipe:

CREAMY TOMATO SOUP

6 tbsp unsalted butter
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 tsp course salt
3 lbs chopped ripe tomatoes
1 cup fresh basil leaves, loosely packed
1/2 c heavy cream
2 small onions, chopped fine
1/2 c. dry white wine
1/4 tsp fresh ground pepper

Melt butter in medium saucepan over medium heat. Add onions and garlic and cook, stirring until onions are transparent, about 3 min. Add wine, tomatoes, salt and pepper.  Cook for about 5 to 10 minutes. Stir in basil and remove from heat.

let cool slightly. Transfer about half of the tomato mixture into the blender. Cover lid with clean dish towel and hold lid securely in place and blend soup. Continue until all of the tomato mix is blended.

Place back in saucepan. Add cream and adjust consistency with water  if necessary. Season with more salt and pepper if desired. Serve with toasted sliced of baguette and fresh grated parmesan cheese.

Enjoy!

Be Kind

I spent two years as a vegan in college. I actually didn't find it all that challenging. I had a decent cookbook and I stuck to the basics. Of course, being a student I wasn't able to buy lots of fresh fruits and vegetables needed for a really healthy diet. And health was my reason for going vegan in the first place. Over time I changed along with my views and I succumbed to the temptations of meat and cheese. 

While I always look for new ways that diet can improve my health I haven't ventured back into veganville in years. Also, I married a good Southern boy who was raised on beef (to his credit he is very open-minded). I was excited to learn that Alicia Silverstone has new vegan cookbook called The Kind Diet that just came out. She's been vegan for 11 years and looks like the epitome of health. Her recipes sound delicious so there's no denying yourself. In the book she shares the knowledge she's gained from her plant-based diet that can immensely improve your health while sustaining the planet. I always love a win-win. You can never argue with that. I'll be happy to try a new way of eating that might make me look as cute as her.

Cranberry-Orange-Walnut Bread

So I read Michael Pollan's article in The New York Times Magazine this past weekend on how we spend less time cooking and in the kitchen these days. It was a thoughtful article and he touched on everything from Julia Child to our modern-day celebrity chef's, exploring the question of why we are food-obsessed but would rather watch people cook than do it ourselves. 

I definitely can see how we've gotten to this place as a country. I personally find cooking to be relaxing, grounding and a wonderful creative outlet but I know some people find it intimidating. There is no need to take on a Top Chef-caliber meal on your first try. Cooking simple things can be so rewarding, not to mention it makes your house smell delicious and you learn to think about where the food comes from. 

This inspired me to spend a little time in the kitchen today. With the ingredients I had lying around I decided on Craberry-Walnut-Orange Bread. See my recipe below:

Ingredients:

2 tbsp orange zest

3/4 orange juice

1 1/2 baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

2 cups all-purpose flour

1 1/2 cups dried cranberries

1/2 cup walnuts

2 tbsp vegetable oil

1/2 cup sugar

1 egg

Preheat oven 350 degrees

Mix all the ingredients in the blender then place in then place in a bread pan. Bake for 55 minutes. Simple and delicious!