YOUR HEALTHY PLATE: Roasted Tomato Soup

Do you know that feeling when you have a dozen gorgeous tomatoes on the counter and you go grocery shopping, and you forget, and you come home with another eight gorgeous tomatoes? Yes, of course you do. 

This week, I decided to make fresh tomato soup, which I had never made before. I have loved tomato soup since I was a kid. I especially loved my friend Mendy’s tomato soup when we were in graduate school, which was half a lifetime ago. I added white beans to this recipe, but no one will know unless you tell them.

I was really delighted by how this recipe turned out, which means that it will definitely be appearing in the regular soup rotation. Just a word of caution: even though I am not traditionally an apron wearer, I do recommend wearing one for this recipe, especially for the immersion blender part. Luckily that occurred to me before I trashed my favorite pale gray sweater.

12 medium-sized tomatoes (on the vine), rinsed and sliced in half
2 Tbsp. olive oil + 2 Tbsp. olive oil
1 large Vidalia onion, peeled and diced
1 tsp. coriander
1 heaping tsp. organic brown coconut sugar (I used Big Tree Farms brand)
1 1/2 tsp. Kosher salt
2 tsp. ground pepper
3/4 tsp. garlic powder
3 cups vegetable stock
1 can (15 oz.) small-medium white beans, rinsed well
1 avocado, diced into small cubes for garnish (optional)

  1. Select a cookie sheet with raised sides, line it with foil, and spread it with the tomatoes, cut sides up. Sprinkle with 2 Tbsp. olive oil, and 1 tsp. each salt and pepper. Roast at 450F for 30-40 minutes, Begin to check at 30 minutes, and remove from oven once the edges of half the tomatoes have begun to turn dark brown. Set aside.
  2. Heat 2 Tbsp. olive oil in soup pot on medium-high heat until fragrant. Add onion and stir to prevent burning. Add coconut sugar, coriander, and remaining pepper. Continue to stir (2-3 min.) until onion is softening and beginning to brown. 
  3. Slide the roasted tomatoes along with their juices into the soup pot, and stir everything together. Add the vegetable stock, white beans, garlic powder, and remaining salt.
  4. With immersion blender, blend together the ingredients in the soup pot for approx 1 minute until the texture is becoming smoother. Then let the soup sit at room temperature for an hour to allow the flavors to blend.
  5. Warm for 10-15 minutes on low if desired. Then serve with a teaspoon of avocado cubes on top, or a drizzle of olive oil if desired.

YOUR HEALTHY PLATE: Colorful Vegetables

At our house, we make an extra effort to eat plenty of produce. It might come in the form of broccoli/cauliflower soup, tossed green salad, minestrone, tomato-cucumber salad, sweet potatoes, pickled beets, sun-dried tomatoes, guacamole, homemade applesauce. At the moment we have tangerines, blackberries, strawberries, apples and persimmon in the refrigerator, along with bananas, cherry tomatoes, cucumbers, and a pomegranate on the counter. Tomorrow night we’re going to have baked apples stuffed with dried figs and shredded coconut.

Our meals usually have a lot going for them in the form of produce and color. Color means phytonutrients, and phytonutrients mean antioxidant power. Colors might include red, green (light, medium, and dark), white, yellow, brown, blue, orange. As much color as we can pack into each meal. And, as my mom taught me, the more colors at a meal, the better. Continue reading