Tomato Soup

The weather in the UAE has been surprising us unfailingly every weekend. Seems like the sun after being on full-time duty throughout the week plans to take a break and chill out behind a blanket of clouds at the weekend; giving way to white fluffy cotton balls in the sky, gust of wind and sometimes a little shower of rain to please us residents!

Isn't it amazing that we are headed towards the end of April but the evenings are still cool with wind sweeping the trees and being the perfect reason to stretch our daily park outing time. I can't help but say yes to Little M when he urges 'can we stay a little bit more please'; whenever I call out to my little one going up and down the slide.

As predicted, the crazy windy weather got me down last weekend leaving me with a cold, and an itchy throat. Whenever someone at the house is struck with the cold/flu, I help calm it down with a bowl of comforting warm soup full of nutrition, veggie goodness and a slight scent of whole spices (such as cumin, cloves, black peppercorns and bay leaves) to do their magic. The addition of these whole spices is a must when I am looking to treat and calm down any cold/flu or ward off seasonal infections/allergies.

Soups, I can safely say, are something that delight me albeit their simplicity. I love that warm thick liquid entering my throat and slowly calming me down. The autumn/winter season calls for a simmering pot of soup brewing away in the kitchen to warm up the evenings and fill up the house with its bubbling aroma. Its just too comforting to not have a bowl full of warm rich goodness when I am not feeling well. I normally make chicken soup with lots of fresh herbs and ginger-garlic to fight back any cold/flu and keep allergies at bay. But the last weekend I was craving to cosy up with some tomato soup-bread sticks combo so I whipped this up straight away!

Taking in the aroma of freshly boiled pulpy tomatoes is a must for me! Simple, dense and sweet the fragrance just takes me back to my childhood.

Tomato soup happens whenever I have a bulk of tomatoes sitting in my pantry and mostly during the autumn/winter season. This version is simple and the recipe I have kind of ingrained in me after having seen my mom and my grandma prepare it by whistling the tomatoes in a pressure cooker and then peeling off the skin and mashing up the pulp.

Difficulty Level: Easy

Time: 30 min

Ingredients:

6-7 tomatoes

1 apple, sliced, skin and seeds removed

2-3 tbsp finely chopped onion

1 tbsp finely chopped garlic

2 bay leaves

3-4 cloves
6-8 peppercorns
3-4 tbsp butter
1 tbsp cooking oil

2-3 tbsp fresh cream

1 tsp roasted cumin

a pinch of sugar

2 tbsp corn flour dissolved in equal quantity of water

Method:

1) Pressure cook tomatoes and apple in 3-4 cups water for 2-3 whistles. When the steam escapes, remove the lid and take out the tomatoes in a dish. Let them cool a bit and then by hand pinch away the skin to peel it completely.

 

2) Using a blender grind the tomatoes and apple to make a thick pulp. Keep aside.

3) Warm 3-4 tbsp butter in a pan with a tbsp cooking oil. Add bay leaves, peppercorns, cloves and saute until a rich aroma comes. Now add in chopped garlic. Saute until the raw smell disappears.

3) Now add onions and saute until translucent.

4) Add the tomato and apple pulp with 1-2 cup stock that was used to pressure cook the tomatoes and bring to a boil. Sprinkle roasted cumin powder. Stir.

5) Now add corn flour-water mixture. Stir and bring to a boil again.

 Serve hot with a drizzle of fresh cream and some bread sticks to be munched along.

How do you make your tomato soup?

Share your soup stories with me. I'd love to hear them all!

Thanks for reading. :-)