About the Recipe
Ingredients
Ingredients - Soup
5 tbsp Olive Oil, divided
17 whole Roma Tomatoes, (approx. 3.5 lb)
1 1⁄2 tbsp balsamic vinegar
2 tsp salt
1⁄4 tsp fresh cracked black pepper
2 tsp Italian seasoning
3 whole heads of garlic
1 whole onion, chopped
3 tbsp tomato paste
2 (2 oz each) bunches basil, stems removed, and chopped
1/4 cup flat-leaf parsley, chopped
3-1/2 cups chicken stock, or vegetable stock for vegetarian
1 cup cubed of French baguette, reserve remaining bread for croutons (recipe below)
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1⁄4 to 1 tsp red chili pepper flakes (depending on how spicy you like it!)
Ingredients - Croutons
Remainder of French baguette
Olive oil to taste
Kosher salt to taste
Ground black pepper to taste
Herbes de Provence
Preparation
Preparation - Soup
Preheat the oven to 400° F and line the baking sheet with parchment paper.
Cut the Roma tomatoes in half and place them on a sheet pan; combine 2 tablespoons of olive oil, the balsamic vinegar and other ingredients up to and including the Italian seasoning. Spoon over tomatoes.
Cut 3 heads of garlic in half and drizzle olive oil over top of them; wrap the oiled heads tightly in foil, and place them with the tomatoes on the baking sheet, and roast them together for 45 minutes.
Once the tomatoes and garlic are toasted, set them aside to cool slightly until they can be handled; then, squeeze the roasted garlic cloves out of their papers, discard papers and set aside the roasted garlic cloves.
In a 4 qt stock pot set over medium-high heat, add 3 tablespoons of olive oil and the chopped onion; saute for a couple of minutes, and allow to become aromatic and translucent; then, add in the tomato paste and roasted tomatoes (and all of their juice from the baking sheet), along with the roasted garlic cloves, and stir those together; next, add the basil and parsley, along with the chicken stock and cubed bread, and allow the soup to gently simmer, covered, for about 20 minutes.
To finish the soup, add the grated Parmesan cheese, and using a hand immersion blender (or a regular blender), puree the soup until smooth or to your liking or completely pureed (if using a blender, work in small batches to puree- be careful to not overfill the blender, as hot soup can splatter). Add red pepper flakes, check the salt/pepper and adjust, if necessary.
7. Ladle soup into serving bowls, and top with croutons.
Preparation - Croutons
1. Cube remainder of French baguette
2. Drizzle olive oil to taste
3. Sprinkle salt, pepper and Herbes de
Provence to taste
4. Spread croutons on a baking sheet, and bake at 425° F until toasted, approx 6 - 10 minutes. Remove from
the oven, set aside to cool.