Creamy Tomato Bisque

Creamy Tomato Bisque

’Tis the season for soup. I tried this one out over the weekend. You can omit the corn and go easy on the salt if you are using salted butter, or you can substitute oil or avocado oil for the butter.

Also if you would like the creamy texture of the half & half, but not the calories, you can substitute whole milk for the half & half. You can use Roma tomatoes instead of the cherry tomatoes — just make sure you chop them up small.

1 1/4 lbs. cherry tomatoes, halved

1 large yellow onion, chopped

1 red bell pepper, chopped

1 cup corn, opt

3 large garlic cloves, minced

1/2 cup butter

2 Tbsp olive oil

1/2 cup finely chopped sun-dried tomatoes (packed in oil)

1/3 cup finely chopped fresh parsley

2 Tbsp chopped fresh dill

1/2 Tbsp dried oregano

1/8 tsp red pepper flakes

1 tsp salt

1 tsp freshly ground black pepper

1 cup flour

6 cup chicken or vegetable broth

2 15-oz cans diced tomatoes

1 15-oz can tomato sauce

2 cup half & half

In a stock pot over medium heat sauté tomatoes, onion and pepper in butter until onion is soft and translucent. Add garlic sun-dried tomatoes, parsley, dill, oregano, red pepper flakes, salt, and pepper. Cook for a couple of minutes. Sprinkle in flour over mixture and stir until the flour is absorbed. Cook for one more minute.

Slowly add the stock while stirring the mixture in pot to avoid lumps. Add canned diced tomatoes and tomato sauce and stir to combine. Turn heat up a bit to medium-high and cook until bisque thickens and starts to boil. Lower heat to medium-low to stay warm until serving.

About 10 minutes before serving, stir in half & half. Let the bisque to become thoroughly heated.

— Barbara Rexford