It's looking as though this summer's tomato season is finally wrapping up. So sad. :( It's never a fun transition going from picking them straight off the vine, to pulling a can off the shelf. But I can't complain — my garden turned out a stellar crop this summer, and we enjoyed finding all sorts of creative ways to make the most of it!
So for a final celebration, I wanted to make my favorite tomato soup of the summer. It's more accurately a tomato-pepper soup, being that an entire roasted red pepper is hidden in there. But it is absolutely fantastic. As one of my old roommates once complained, it can be so difficult to find a stellar tomato soup that doesn't taste like marinara sauce, yet is still bursting with great flavor. But thankfully, I've found such a soup!!!
Truly, this one is outstanding. The combination of the seasonings and roasted veggies (don't even bat an eyelash at all of the onions – they're fantastic!) is perfect. The texture is thick without being creamy. And I love the added touch of the parmesan chips on top. They literally take minutes to make, but they're super-fun for presentation and always receive many "ooohs" and "ahhhs" from friends.
This roasted tomato soup is a classic with a twist! Be sure to try it out.
Preheat the oven to 375 F degrees and position 2 racks in the middle of the oven. Line 2 rimmed baking sheets with parchment paper, alternately you can just rub them down with a thin glaze of olive oil.
Arrange the tomatoes, skin side down, on a baking sheet. Brush the bell pepper and onions with olive oil and put them on the other baking sheet along with the garlic, place the pepper skin side down as well. Give both sheets a light showering of salt, then bake until the tomatoes start to collapse and the onions start to brown and caramelize, about 45 minutes. Turn the onions if they start getting overly dark on the bottom. Check on the garlic as well, once the cloves are golden and oozy inside, pull them from the oven.
Peel the garlic, dump all of the roasted vegetables into a big, high-sided bowl, and puree with a hand blender. Alternately, use a conventional blender or food processor and work in batches to puree. Blend in a cup of the stock, and keep adding the rest 1/2 cup at a time until the soup is the desired consistency. (I like all 3 cups worth of broth, but add less if you like a thicker soup!) Add the paprika, freshly ground black pepper, and a bit more salt if needed – adjusting to your taste.