Soup is just a way of screwing you out of a meal. Jay Leno
What’s in a soup, you say? Soup can so easily be dismissed as boring and even unappetizing. But this slow roasted thick tomato soup is a different story, served in a bread bowl, with a cheese crisp. It’s warming and nourishing, and the perfect way to get snuggle up in the cool winter months.
However, the highlight of the soup is the cheese crisp along with the bread bowl. Making the cheese crisp will be one of the simplest edible adornments you will ever make, and yet make you look like a real kitchen pro!
The slow roasting of tomatoes is done in the oven with the tomatoes sprinkled with a good quality olive oil, sea salt, pepper, herbs and garlic. Roast them for a good 45 minutes or so, and for some heat you can add in a red chilli pepper or two with the seeds.
For the delicious bread bowl, scoop out the insides to create a bowl. Place it in the oven with your tomatoes for the bread to crisp up a bit so that it can hold the liquid. Keep the scooped out insides to make herbed breadcrumbs later.
This soup is wholesome, warm, filling and a great balance to the rest of the cakes coming your way this Christmas!
The Recipe
Serves Serves: 1 | Prep Time: 20 mins | Cook Time: 45 mins
Ingredients
- 1 medium whole-wheat round bread roll
- 5 medium tomatoes
- 6-7 garlic cloves
- 4 tsp olive oil
- 1 ½ tsp sea salt
- 1 tsp black pepper
- 2 tsp dried basil
- 2 red chilli peppers (optional)
- 4-5 fresh basil leaves
- For the cheese crisp:
- 3 tbsp grated cheddar cheese
- sprinkle of dried basil
- pinch of paprika
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 200°C.
- Cut the tomatoes into halves and place on a baking tray close together with the garlic.
- Drizzle the olive oil, seasonings and chilli peppers on top of the tomatoes and place the tray in the oven for about 45 minutes, covering the tray with an aluminium foil for the first 30 minutes.
- Cut the top of the bread bun and scoop out the insides to create a bowl.
- Place the bread bowl in the oven too, but remove after 5 minutes, just to gently crisp up the bread.
- Once the tomatoes are well roasted, remove from the oven and let cool.
- Once cooled place all the roasted ingredients along with its juices into a mixer with the fresh basil and crush to make a thick soup. You should not need to add any water
- Pour the soup into the crisped bread bowl and serve warm.
- Cheese Crisps:
- Place a non-stick pan on medium heat.
- Place the grated cheese like a small mound.
- Sprinkle the dried basil and paprika on top.
- In a minute or two, the cheese will melt and spread into a rounded shape.
- Remove from heat and allow the crisp to cool completely, before serving with the soup.
