It’s mid February and winter shows no sign of letting up. My go to food is definitely soups and stews during these chilly months, and I feel proud that I can basically make a soup out of pretty much anything! (I know, it’s the small things in life.) So when my husband asked what was for lunch today (he’s working at home these days but apparently hasn’t learned how to turn the stove on yet, lol!), I immediately thought of making soup.
I opened the fridge to find some sad looking winter tomatoes that had been lying in the bottom of the crisper drawer for far too long, along with a limp carrot. No problem I thought. Out comes the Instant Pot (I’m still obsessed) and 30 minutes later, delicious hearty tomato soup.
Ingredients
6 or 7 medium tomatoes
2 tbsp good quality olive oil
1 medium carrot
1 onion
1 clove garlic
5-6 cups chicken broth
Preparation Instructions
Put a small pot of water to boil.
Peel and cut the onion and carrot.
Score the tomatoes on the top with an x. While you are waiting for the water to boil, set your Instant Pot (or saucepan) to saute and heat up the oil.
Add the onion and carrot, and saute about 6 minutes, until translucent.
While they cook, drop the tomatoes into the water, two or three at a time, and leave in the water about 10 seconds. Scoop them out and repeat with the remaining tomatoes. When cool (almost instantly), peel the tomatoes. Cut them in half, and use your fingers to scoop out the seeds. I’m told tomato seeds and skins are very hard on the digestive system, which is why I bothered with this extra step.
When the onion is cooked, add the tomatoes, and squeeze one clove of garlic over top. Saute 3-4 minutes
Add the broth, close your Instant Pot and pressure cook on high for 10 minutes.
If making this in a saucepan, you may need to cook it for 45 minutes to obtain the same richness of taste.
Release the pressure, and use an immersion blender to puree. Season to taste
Serve with crostini (I use Ace crackers), a drop of olive oil, lots of fresh ground pepper and sea salt.