This is a fantastic way to use your harvest of homegrown tomatoes or the abundance of tomatoes that you can easily find in the grocer these days. I would recommend vine-ripened or plum tomatoes for their full and sweet flavor.
I was inspired by a summer gazpacho recipe from a cookbook French Country Cooking by Mimi Thorisson; but with our rainy Seattle fall weather, I went in search of something a bit heartier. I started with Ina Garten’s recipe found here and modified it to my liking.
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
Place quartered and cored tomatoes in a large bowl with garlic cloves, red bell pepper and toss with 3 tablespoons of olive oil, salt, and pepper.
Place tomatoes, garlic and bell pepper in one layer on a lined and rimmed baking sheet; roast for 45-60 minutes.
While tomatoes, garlic and bell pepper are roasting, in a large stock pot, heat remaining oil and butter. Sauté onions and shallots until they start to caramelize. Add in red pepper flakes, wine, vinegar, basil, thyme, broth and can of tomatoes. Bring to a boil and simmer; add in oven roasted tomatoes, garlic and bell pepper (along with the pan juices. Continue to simmer for 30 more minutes.
Remove from heat; pull out any remaining thyme stems. Using an immersion blender, food processor or counter blender, blend the soup until smooth. Optional: leave chunks of tomatoes in the soup if you prefer a more rustic presentation or pass through a fine sieve or food mill to remove all seeds (note, passing through a sieve will take some time as the soup is thick).
Remove from heat; pull out any remaining thyme stems. Using an immersion blender, food processor or counter blender, blend the soup until smooth. Optional: leave chunks of tomatoes in the soup if you prefer a more rustic presentation or pass through a fine sieve or food mill to remove all seeds.
Optional toppings
Enjoy!
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