Herbed soft cheese, such as Boursin, comes nicely seasoned with garlic and herbs.
If you use plain soft goat cheese instead of seasoned, garnish the soup with some minced
fresh chives and parsley to give it the same flavour notes.
INGREDIENTS
- 1.8 kg tomatoes (see tip, below)
- 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
- 2 onions, finely chopped
- 1 rib celery, finely chopped
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 sprigs fresh thyme (or 1/4 tsp dried)
- 1 tsp salt
- 1/4 tsp pepper
- 170 g garlic-and-herb soft cheese, such as Boursin, or soft goat cheese
PREPARATION
- Score X in bottom of each tomato using sharp knife.
- Blanch tomatoes in a large pot of boiling water until skins begin to split, 20 to 30 seconds.
- Transfer tomatoes to a bowl of ice water and let cool for 1 minute.
- Drain tomatoes and peel off skins.
- Halve tomatoes crosswise and squeeze out seeds and liquid into a fine-mesh sieve set over a bowl.
- Add enough water to tomato juice to make 2 cups and reserve liquid, discard seeds.
- Core and coarsely chop tomatoes.
- Heat 2 tbsp of oil in a saucepan over medium-low heat.
- Cook onions and celery in the saucepan until tender, about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally and reducing heat if necessary to prevent browning.
- Stir in tomatoes, reserved tomato liquid, garlic, thyme, salt, and pepper.
- Bring to boil, then reduce heat, cover, and simmer for 20 minutes.
- Stir in remaining oil and remove thyme.
- Ladle soup into bowls and top with dollops of garlic-and-herb cheese.
NUTRITIONAL INFORMATION, PER EACH OF 6 SERVINGS: about 221 cal, 8 g pro, 16 g total
fat (6 g sat. fat), 16 g carb, 4 g fibre, 13 mg chol, 517 mg sodium. % RDI: 6% calcium,
14% iron, 23% vit A, 83% vit C, 18% folate.
TIP FROM THE TEST KITCHEN
Plum tomatoes are a great choice
for cooking. They have dense flesh
and not too many seeds
