serious soup

[thoreau]

If you like Tomato Soup - this recipe will make you LOVE Tomato Soup:

Tomato Mushroom Soup

Ingredients:

1 tablespoon olive oil
8 ounces button mushrooms, quartered
6 Portabello mushroom caps washed and chopped into large pieces
1 diced red onion
1/2 cup diced red bell pepper
1/2 cup diced green bell pepper
1/2 cup diced orange bell pepper
4 tablespoon thinly sliced garlic (it sounds like a lot - but it spreads out in all the liquid)
2 tablespoons tomato paste
2 (28-ounce) cans diced tomatoes
2 cups chicken stock
2 cups red cooking wine
1 tablespoon marjoram leaves
1 1/2 teaspoons salt

Directions
Set a 4-quart saucepan over medium-high heat and add the olive oil. Add the mushrooms, onions and peppers to the pan and cook for 7 to 8 minutes. Add the garlic and tomato paste to the pan and cook for 1 minute. Add the tomatoes, red wine, chicken stock and marjoram to the pan, and season with the salt. Bring to a boil, reduce the heat to a simmer, and cook until the flavors have married, about 20 minutes. Hit the entire mixture with an immersion blender until smooth - and cover until you are ready to serve.

This makes 3 quarts of soup - so - its not a "single serving" sorta recipe - but this freezes REALLY well. :)
It would make a tremendous soup on it's own with a little cream added - or a tremendous base for a marinara.

Very versatile and very easy.

I usually end up freezing 3/4 of a batch and then making something exciting with added ingredients. Tonight, I added 2 cups shredded tandoori chicken and 1 cup crumbled hot sausage to the soup thirty minutes before serving. Serious Yum. and served with a mango gruyere salad - and a cold glass of riesling. Serious FOODGASM!