With all the heat this summer, it's been a perfect year for tomatoes. Nothing tastes better than a perfectly ripe tomato when it's allowed to fully develop on the vine. Our first tomato treat of the season is always a large platter of thickly sliced beauties layered with equally thick slices of fresh mozzarella, drizzled with a balsamic reduction and lots of sea salt and pepper. We grow a variety of both heirlooms and hybrids here. Hybrids include the popular Beefsteak, Big Boy, and Early Girl tomatoes that are bred for their perfect round shape and red red color. While these are perfectly delicious and fragrant when harvested at their peak, we much prefer the heirlooms with their oddly shaped strange bulbous outgrowths, like Brandywine, Cherokee Purple, and German Striped. These far outshine the modern varieties for flavor.
We are extra busy now in the kitchen preserving as much of our tomato harvest as we can to enjoy through the winter months. Preserving tomatoes couldn't be simpler. Blanch them for about 1 minute in a big pot of boiling water. Immediately plunge into cold water to stop the cooking. This loosens the skins. Peel, and put them whole, or cut into quarters into gallon sized bags and throw into the freezer. Even though it takes time and effort, it's well worth it. When the only available tomatoes at the supermarket taste like cardboard, we'll still be enjoying our heirloom varieties out of the freezer, and in sauces and salsas.
There's nothing as good as tomato soup made from scratch from the perfectly ripe tomatoes we're having in abundance right now. It's so easy and good. Make sure to get some basil to make this recipe!
Tomato Soup with Fresh Basil
This recipe can be adapted by leaving out the cream and topping with homemade croutons before serving.
Ingredients:
1 T butter
1/2 medium onion, diced
4 large heirloom tomatoes, diced
1 quart chicken broth
1/2 cup cream
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 cup fresh basil, cut up
1 tsp. salt
pepper
Creme fraische or Parmesan cheese grated, for garnish
1. Heat butter in dutch oven or soup pot
2. Add onion, saute for 3 to 4 minutes
3. Add tomatoes, basil, salt and pepper, saute a few more minutes until soft
4. Add broth, simmer
5. Remove from heat, add cream (do not boil cream or it will separate)
6. Pour into blender and blend until smooth
7. Garnish with parmesan, or a dollop of creme fraische
