Heartwarming Tomato Soup

I planted three different varieties of tomatoes in Spring.  I had no idea what they were, just different from each other and including one variety that was a Cherry tomato (‘perfect for salads’ I thought).  Our tomato vines have gone CRAZY!  Like, seriously out of control.  Every evening after returning home from work, my darling husband goes outside, plays with the kids on the trampoline and de-fruits the vines.  I ended up with a huuuuuge bowl of them on my counter and not a clue what to do with them.  My intention had always been relish since I love the stuff and spend way too much on the Anathoth version available at the supermarket.  But I’m not much of a ‘bottler’ – it’s the sterilisation part that has me spooked.  Anyway, this evening I knew I had to stop avoiding the tomatoes.

I pulled my trusty favourite “A Cooks’ Companion‘ from the shelf and perused “Tomatoes”.  I saw a recipe for tomato soup, but not having everything required on hand, I adapted to suit me and came up with the following.

Here it is:

Heartwarming Tomato Soup
Ingredients:
1kg tomatoes – roughly chopped
1 onion, sliced
60 grams butter
1L chicken stock
2 T cornflour
salt & pepper to taste

Melt the butter in a large pot and saute onions until clear.  Add tomatoes and cover.  Cook for approximately 20 minutes or until very soft.  Using a stick blender, give a brief whizz.  Add the chicken stock and bring to a simmer.  Place 2 T of cornflour in a small bowl and mix to a smooth paste with a little water.  Add a ladle full of the soup liquid and mix together.  Return it all to the pot and stir.  Cover and continue to simmer for another 20-30 minutes.  Whizz again with the stick blender until your desired consistency is reached.  Add salt & pepper to taste.

Enjoy.