Soup: Smoky Tomato Soup with Gruyere Toasts
Mild Spanish smoked paprika – also called Pimenton – gives dishes an appealing smokiness. Using the sweetest ripest tomatoes in season you can make a simple yet luscious soup flavored with smoked paprika and served with crunchy cheese toasts. Sur le Table is a good store to get the Pimenton, they have both sweet and hot. We use a combination of both to add a little spiciness to the soup. This soup can be made a day or two in advance of serving. Cheers, Tina
Category : Wine Club Award Celebration Dinner 2009
Ingredients:
- 1 tablespoon Unsalted Butter
- 1 tablespoon Extra-Virgin Olive Oil
- 1 Onion, cut into 1/4 –inch dice
- 2 Garlic Cloves, crushed
- 2 teaspoons sweet smoked paprika, preferably Pimenton de la Vera
- 3 ½ pounds tomatoes, quartered (cans of diced tomatoes will work if good tomatoes aren’t in season)
- ½ cup Water
- 1 Thyme Sprig
- 1 Bay Leaf
- Kosher Salt and freshly Ground Pepper
- 1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons heavy cream
- Eight 1/4 –inch-thick Baguette Slices, cut on the diagonal or bias
- 2 ounces Gruyere Cheese coarsely grated (3/4 cup)
Directions:
1. In a soup pot, melt the butter in the olive oil. Add the onion and garlic and cook over moderately high heat until tender, about 5 minutes.
2. Add the paprika and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds.
3. Add the tomatoes, water, thyme sprig, and bay leaf, season with salt and pepper and bring the tomato mixture to a boil.
4. Cover and simmer over moderate heat until the tomatoes break down, about 15 minutes. Discard the thyme sprig and bay leaf.
5. Preheat the broiler.
6. In a blender, puree the soup in batches until smooth (or leave some slightly chunky if you prefer)
7. OPTIONAL: Strain the soup back into the pot pressing on the solids to extract as much soup as possible. (Do this step if you want a really thin soup, or skip the step for a thicker chunkier soup.)
8. Stir the cream into the soup and season with salt and pepper.
9. Meanwhile, place the baguette slices on a baking sheet. Broil 6 inches from the heat until lightly toasted on both sides, about 2 minutes total. (This happens fast, so keep an eye on things)
10. Top the toasts with the Gruyere and broil for about 30 seconds, until the cheese is bubbly.
11. Ladle the soup into bowls and serve with the Gruyere toasts.
Yield: Serves 4 (this is an easy soup to double and freezes really well)