VEGVACIOUS: Roasted Tomato Basil Soup

Why hello there.

So far, September has blessed us with several warm and sunny days, but the chilly evenings are a surefire sign that Fall really is right around the corner. The weather's not the only that changing; I'm starting to notice some changes going on in my garden too. The green beans, lettuce and zucchini plants are almost picked clean and the squash, tomatoes, pumpkins and corn are all getting really close to being ready.

I think I love the late summer veggies the most. Squash is one of my favourites and who doesn't love a fresh tomato picked straight from the vine?! The tomatoes coming out of the garden are so sweet and flavourful; I swear I'll never be able to eat another bland grocery store tomato again!!

Of course, you know I have an addiction to roasting every veggie that passes through my kitchen doors and now that the night's are cooling off, the oven keeps calling my name. I've roasted sweet potato rounds, zucchini, butternut squash and now tomatoes. Do you know how amazing your kitchen smells when you roast a combo of fresh tomatoes, olive oil, sea salt and basil?? The aroma is utterly DIVINE my friends.

Last night I took four huge beefsteak tomatoes and chopped them up and roasted them. Afterwards, I blended them up into the creamiest soup imaginable. This recipe is going to be some pretty tough competition to the traditional homemade tomato soup my dad and grandma used to make.

Roasted Tomato Basil Soup

Serves 3

4 large tomatoes, each cut into 8 wedges
3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1 1/2 tsp sea salt
1 1/2 tsp black pepper
1 tsp dried basil
1/4 - 1/3 c fresh basil*
1 3/4 c unsweetened original almond milk (or 1% milk)
2 tbsp melted Earth Balance (butter)

Preheat your oven to 325.

Place all of your tomatoes in a large baking dish. Drizzle the olive oil over the tomatoes and sprinkle with 1/2 tsp sea salt and 1/2 tsp black pepper and the dried basil. Roast for 75 - 80 minutes.

Once the tomatoes have finished roasting, place them all into your blender. Puree until smooth. Add the rest of the ingredients and puree until smooth. Season with additional sea salt and pepper as necessary.

The milk will probably cool the soup down too much, so pour it into a pot and warm it back up on the stove.

Ladle the soup into bowls and garnish with toasted croutons, sour cream, diced green onion, shredded cheddar or whatever else might float your boat :-)

The result is a soup that's smooth and creamy and tastes like heaven in a bowl.

*I used 1/3 cup basil in my soup, but you might want to start with 1/4 cup and add more if it's suitable to your tastes because the flavour of the basil is quite distinct. Personally, I love it!