I love the traditional thick and creamy tomato soups especially during cozy fall and winter evenings. However, it is still summer and the weathers are warm where I feel like eating light, fresh and clean flavours. So, I came up with this recipe because I stocked our fridge with beautiful local farmers market tomatoes and because I love the combination of tomato and garlic. This roasted soup gives a unique mild smokey background taste that differs from the traditional version. This also is incredibly healthy as it uses no cream or cheese and tastes airy and light with a subtle hint of roasted flavours. There is a mild taste of garlic and a spiciness from the chili oil great for summer evenings.
The Home made chili oil needs to be made in advance as the flavours need to infuse into the oil for at least a couple of weeks. This oil is made from peperoncinos that we bought back from France. Last year after visiting a restaurant in Corsica, we were inspired by their homemade olive oils that added great flavour to their dishes. The added bay leaves and small chili peppers into good quality olive oil that soaks together making a deep red olive oil. So for this dish I used our Corsica inspired oil.
Ingredients
Garnish: Black Pepper, basil & Spring onions
Directions
Chop tomatoes and garlic on a roasting tray. Add chili oil (olive oil will do aswell), black pepper and fresh herbs. Place into a 190 C oven for the first ten minutes until dropping the temperature to 150 C. Slow cook the tomatoes for about an hour.
In a saucepan sauté onions in a bit of butter Add the roasted tomatoes and check for salt. Blend the mixture into a paste and if the consistency is too thick, add a bit of water or chicken stock. Add smoked paprika and a handful of finely chopped basil.
Garnish with black pepper and a pinch of finger saltl and spring onions. Add more chili oil if you want extra heat.