This recipe was a bit more time-consuming than I had anticipated, but yielded a very tasty result. I’m a bit iffy on the suggestion as to how to peel and seed the tomato– the directions I was given were slightly unclear and it seemed to be a lot harder than it should have been. At any rate, this is a great way to use some summer tomatoes and any leftover chicken soup that you might have lying around (or chicken stock, which is basically the broth for the chicken soup made earlier). This is another recipe from the Williams Sonoma series, this one coming from the “soups” book.

Ingredients:

2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

1 large yellow onion, chopped

3 garlic cloves, minced

3 lb ripe tomatoes

4 cups chicken or vegetable stock

1/2 cup finely chopped basil leaves, plus more whole leaves for garnish

salt and freshly ground pepper

1/2 cup freshly grated parmesan cheese

Directions:

1. Peel and seed tomatoes. I am fairly certain that my advice wouldn’t be adequate, but this site does an amazing job at explaining it: http://www.formerchef.com/2009/08/20/how-to-peel-and-seed-fresh-tomatoes/  
2. Once your tomatoes are peeled and seeded, dice them and put them into a bowl.
3. Prepare your other veggies as well. Once everything is prepared, heat the 2 tbsp in a large soup pot.
4. Once heated, add onions. Cook for 5-7 minutes until softened. Add garlic and cook for 30 seconds. 
5. Add tomatoes and soup stock. Raise heat to a boil, then cover and reduce heat to medium high. Cook for 30 minutes. 
6. With a handheld blender (what I used), puree soup. Alternatively, move soup to a food processor and puree in batches to desired texture.  
7. Return soup to heat and reheat gently.
8. Add chopped basil and season to taste with salt and pepper.
9. As a serving suggestion, toast several slices of French bread. Place at the bottom of a warmed bowl and sprinkle with a spoonful of Parmesan cheese. Ladle soup on top and garnish with a bay leaf.
10.