Cream of Tomato Soup

I love home made soup.  I could live on it but I have never yet made tomato soup from scratch - i Have threatened to but that is as far as it has got.  

Sunday I have a gammon joint to cook for packups but we are also having roast chicken for tea so double whammy on the stock front.

Funnily enough I bought fresh tomatoes today so I seem to be set up for a spot of soup making.

Ingredients:

Some bacon lardons
500g chopped peeled tomatoes fresh or canned
1 small celery stalk diced
1 small onion diced
1 carrot diced
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
2 tablespoons plain flour
250ml single cream
1 teaspoon of salt (optional you may not need this because of the bacon taste first)
pinch of pepper
3 tablespoons of sour cream
3 tablespoons finely chopped parsley (optional)

Method

Fry off the lardons in on a medium heat then add the tomatoes, celery, carrot and onion and bring to the boil.  Reduce the heat to low and cover and simmer for 15 minutes stirring often.  Remove from the heat and let the mixture cool down for 10 minutes.

Transfer to a food processor or blender and process until a smooth puree.

Heat the oil in a large saucepan over a medium heat.  Add the flour and stir until the mixture is smooth.  Gradually add the cream stirring constantly.  Bring to the boil and cook for  2 minutes.

Gradually add the tomato mixture stirring constantly. Taste and add salt if needed and the pepper.  Continue to cook until the soup is heated through.

Ladle into bowls and garnish each with a dollop of sour cream and a sprinkle of parsley if desired.

Eat and enjoy

Pattypan