Creamy Tomato Soup – Without the Cream

My dad, being the sweet man he is, purchased me a really cool magazine called The Best of America's Test Kitchen: Best Recipes and Reviews 2010.  It's really fun to look through, because basically the authors of the articles have worked to create the "best" version of this or that.

Since I decided today I was giving up white flour and sugar until my sister's wedding (don't worry, we'll discuss and debate this idea later this week), I was thrilled when I found a neat recipe for tomato soup that appeared almost healthy.

The author of the article accompanying the recipe claimed he (she?) wanted to omit cream because cream mutes tomato flavor.  Secretly I think the author was thinking about homegirls like me who want to at least pretend to cook healthy food for their families.

I love soup ... well, homemade soup anyway.  I also really enjoy tomatoes in the summer, and I seem to be on a summer eating kick.  The neat thing about this soup is it uses canned tomatoes, so you can make tasty homemade tomato soup year-round.

This soup was so easy to make, that I think I even got it right the first time.  I may love to cook and bake, but it seems like I never get it right the first time.

I'd give you my husband's recommendation, but when we sat down I learned he does not like tomato soup.  Married four years and you think I'd know everything he doesn't like... but the list is just so long.

Creamless Creamy Tomato Soup

1/4 extra-virgin olive oil
1 onion, chopped medium (about 1 cup)
3 medium garlic cloves, minced
pinched red pepper flakes (optional)
1 bay leaf
2 (28-ounce) cans whole tomatoes
1 tablespoon brown sugar
3 slices high-quality white sandwich bread, crusts removed, torn into 1-inch pieces
2 cups low-sodium chicken broth
2 T brandy (optional)
salt and pepper
1/4 cup chopped chives

-J Kenji Lopez-Alt from Cook's Illustrated


Heat your olive oil in a Dutch oven.  By the way, I did not use all the olive oil the recipe called for, because goodness that is a lot of olive oil.  You are welcome to do as you please.

Heat the olive oil until it simmers and add the onions, garlic and bay leaf.  I did not use the red pepper flakes, because I wanted this to be all about the tomato.

Open up those cans and pour in all those tomatoes.  Mmmmm they smell so good.

I sort of fell in love with this tomato.  Can you guess which one?  It was just so perfect, with all its skin perfectly removed.  I really, really didn't want to smash it with my potato masher, which is what comes next.  Mash those tomatoes until no pieces bigger than 2 inches remain.  So says Lopez-Alt.  But don't mash the bay leaf... it gets to live.  But not my poor tomato.

Stir in the sugar.

And the bread.  OK, time out here.  Since I am not eating sugar or white flour, I decided I had to choose one to eliminate.  Since I love sweet, I chose white bread.  I used whole wheat bread instead.  I also used the crusts.  I do not recommend using the crusts.  But I thought the wheat bread was just fine.

Bring the soup to a boil.  Cook, stirring occassionally, until the bread starts to  break down.  This is about 5 minutes.  Remove the bay leaf.

At this point I am missing a photo, because my blender exploded.  I was too embarrassed to take photos of my blender shooting tomato all over my kitchen, so please excuse the lack of illustration.

Put about half the mixture from your Dutch oven into your blender, add a little more olive oil and mix until mixture is smooth and creamy.  The recipe says this is 2-3 minutes, but I think you can do it for about 1 and be just fine.

Return the first half to a bowl and put the remaining mixture from the Dutch oven in the blender.  Mix until smooth.  Put both halves back into the Dutch oven. Add in your 2 cups chicken broth. Bring to a boil, and then you are ready to serve.

Serve with black pepper and chives if you wish.