This soup will certainly be added to my comfort food repertoire. At the high cooking temperature, the vegetables release their sugars and become caramelized. The caramelization combined with the balsamic fragrance makes the whole house smell fabulous. Also, the tomato soup is very economical to make. It can also be made using a vegetable broth instead of beef broth. I blended the ingredients until they were "liquefied", however I decided not to put the soup through a sieve. The soup still had a great texture and was hearty too. Pictured below is the baking dish full of garlic cloves, drained whole tomatoes, and chopped onions.
Creamy Tomato-Balsamic Soup
1 cup less-sodium beef broth, divided
1 tablespoon brown sugar
3 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
1 tablespoon low-sodium soy sauce
1 cup coarsely chopped onion
5 garlic cloves
2 (28-ounce) cans whole tomatoes, drained
3/4 cup half-and-half
Preheat oven to 500°.
Combine 1/2 cup of broth, sugar, vinegar, and soy sauce in a small bowl. Place onion, garlic, and tomatoes in a 13 x 9-inch baking pan coated with cooking spray. Pour broth mixture over tomato mixture. Bake at 500° for 50 minutes or until vegetables are lightly browned.
Place tomato mixture in a blender. Add remaining 1/2 cup broth and half-and-half, and process until smooth. Strain mixture through a sieve into a bowl; discard solids. Garnish with cracked black pepper, if desired.
Yield: 4 servings (serving size: about 1/2 cup)
NUTRITION PER SERVING: CALORIES 120(35% from fat); FAT 4.7g (sat 3g,mono 1.5g,poly 0.1g); PROTEIN 3.8g; CHOLESTEROL 23mg; CALCIUM 120mg; SODIUM 452mg; FIBER 1.7g; IRON 1.7mg; CARBOHYDRATE 14.9g
Julie Grimes
Cooking Light, OCTOBER 2005
