Name: Chunky Tomato Basil Soup Recipe
Prep time: 20 min
Cook time: 45 min
Total time: 1 h
Yield: 8 servings
Cuisine: American
Ingredients: 1 1/2 to 2 cups of celery, chopped; Large white onion, chopped; 4 cloves of fresh garlic, crushed (love my Oxo® garlic press - it makes miniature diced garlic!); 2 cell packs of fresh basil - half finely chopped to cook with the onions and celery, the rest to make a chiffonade when the soup is reheated.; 4 tablespoons of salted butter; 1/2 teaspoon of thyme; 1/2 teaspoon sea salt; Freshly cracked pepper to taste; 28 oz. Hunt's® diced tomatoes, undrained; 3 - 14.5 oz. cans of Del Monte® diced "Basil, Garlic & Oregano" tomatoes (undrained); 1 cup of hot water; 2 Knorr® chicken bouillon cubes or a small container of regular chicken broth or bone broth; 2 to 3 tablespoons of cornstarch diluted in a 3/4 cup of cold water; 1/4 cup of Organic heavy cream (optional)

Description

A delicious chunky tomato basil soup recipe – lots of chunky tomatoes with celery, onions and fresh chopped basil. Tastes yummy without the cream but have some on hand for those who would like a swirl of fresh cream.

Scale

Ingredients

1 1/2 to 2 cups of celery, chopped
Large white onion, chopped
4 cloves of fresh garlic, crushed (love my Oxo® garlic press – it makes miniature diced garlic!)
2 cell packs of fresh basil – half finely chopped to cook with the onions and celery, the rest to make a chiffonade when the soup is reheated.
4 tablespoons of salted butter
1/2 teaspoon of thyme
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
Freshly cracked pepper to taste
28 oz. Hunt’s® diced tomatoes, undrained
3 – 14.5 oz. cans of Del Monte® diced “Basil, Garlic & Oregano” tomatoes (undrained)
1 cup of hot water
2 Knorr® chicken bouillon cubes or a small container of regular chicken broth or bone broth
2 to 3 tablespoons of cornstarch diluted in a 3/4 cup of cold water
1/4 cup of Organic heavy cream (optional)

Instructions

Chop the celery and onions into even sized dice.
Pick the leaves from several sprigs of fresh basil. Bunch them together and slice them into a rough chop – you could also cut them directly into the pan with kitchen shears.
Set the vegetables aside.
In a Dutch oven, melt the butter over medium low heat. Add the chopped vegetables and basil. Sauté for about 5 to 8 minutes until translucent and easy to pierce with the tip of a knife. You want them cooked through but not burned or singed.
Season with salt, pepper and thyme.
Pour the canned tomatoes over the sautéed vegetables.
Stir to combine well.
Add the hot chicken bouillon mixture, stir to combine.
Set the temperature to low and simmer the soup for about 40 to 45 minutes.
I had to allow the soup to cool a little in order to transport it.
Remove about 3 cups of soup and ladle it into a deep bowl or a quart size Pyrex® measuring cup.
With an immersion blender, blend the 3 cups of soup until smooth. Set aside.
When ready to serve, reheat the soup on low.
Carefully add in the blended soup. Stir to combine.
Mix the cornstarch and cold water – add to the soup and mix well to distribute evenly.
Allow the soup to come back to a simmer and thicken a little.
Add cream at this point and blend well. The cream is optional.

Notes

Please note that I had to interrupt the complete soup making process into order to “travel”. I prepared the soup through Step #9 early enough in the morning that the soup had time to cool in the Dutch oven.
When dinner time came around, I completed the soup making process while prepping grilled cheese sandwiches – aged cheddar and pastrami grilled in Panini sized slices of Italian bread.
Here is a rocking garlic press that works well with any size clove – from elephant garlic to regular cloves.