Cream Of Sun-dried Tomato Soup

Total Time: 55 mins Preparation Time: 25 mins Cook Time: 30 mins

Ingredients

• Servings: 6
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 2 celery ribs, chopped
• 2 medium carrots, chopped
• 3 cloves garlic, finely chopped
• 4 cups chicken stock or 4 cups vegetable stock
• 4 cups chopped ripe tomatoes or 4 cups canned italian tomatoes, drained
• 1 large potato, peeled and diced
• 1/2 cup sun-dried tomato (not in oil)
• 1 tablespoon chopped fresh basil or 1 teaspoon dried basil
• 1 cup milk or 1 cup half-and-half or 1 cup heavy cream
• sugar
• salt
• fresh ground pepper
• chopped chives (to garnish)

Recipe

• 1 heat the olive oil in a large pot over moderate heat.
• 2 add the onion, celery, carrot, and garlic and sauté until tender but not brown, about 5 minutes.
• 3 add the stock, tomatoes, potato, sun-dried tomatoes, and basil.
• 4 bring to a boil, reduce heat, and simmer covered for 20 minutes, until the vegetables are tender.
• 5 puree in a food processor, or blender, in small batches until smooth.
• 6 strain through a fine sieve if desired.
• 7 stir in the milk or cream and season with sugar, salt, and pepper.
• 8 serve garnished with chopped chives.
• 9 this soup gets an additional tomato punch from the concentrated flavor of the sun-dried tomatoes.