Unique And Delicious Tomato Soup

My husband, Jerry and I, recently went on a Juice Fast. We have done it only one other time. Often in January, after holiday festivities are over, we do something kind of radical to get back on a healthy track. But it’s September?! Life for us lately has been a bit out of balance due to circumstances out of our control so we decided to hit the “re-set” button and get things back on track. The Juice Fast did that, for sure! We are both in the pink and feeling excellent. Plus this time the juices were much better than the first time I tried it. It did not seem like punishment!

I made several varieties so we wouldn’t tire of it so easily. Our favorite, by far was a Gazpacho Juice. And the juiced fiber from that drink became the base of the Tomato Soup, but more on that later.

One of my favorite juices was the Carrot Juice.

I sweetened that juice with some fruit, which added just the right amount of sweetness and complexity to the drink. Here are the ingredients I used:

2 lbs. carrots-no need to peel, just wash and cut off tops

1/4 wedge of lemon-the acid really helps bring together flavor

1″ knob of fresh ginger root-again, don’t peel. This adds some peppery zip to the drink.

2 nectarines-I used super ripe fruit so lots of sugar!

1 orange-blends beautifully with carrot

3 red delicious apples-quartered

1 cup green grapes-More sugar!

With Juicing I have learned (as with all cooking!) taste, taste, taste to get just the right blend of flavors.

Our third favorite was a Red Juice. I call this one ROBUST RED.

Here are the ingredients I used:

3 sweet potatoes

2 large beets

4 carrots

1 scallion, white part only

1/2 red/1/2 orange pepper

1 cup frozen cherries

Small piece of ginger

For those of you sick about hearing about juicing and just want the Tomato Soup recipe, please feel free to Jump to Recipe. I made a Fruity Juice for Jerry, which I called FUN AND FRUITY, as he was craving sweets (Nectarines, Apples, Orange, Watermelon, lemon, Lettuce, Green Grapes, Green Apple, 1 large English cuke, handful of Basil. I also made a Green Drink called HUSH MAGIC DRAGON. You’ve got to have fun with this, right? That one contained: 1 lb. of Super Greens, 1/2 lb. Spinach, 4 zucchinis, 3 stalks celery, 1 clove garlic, Small amount of Basil, 2 Small Cukes, 1 Green Apple, 1/2 Green Pepper, 1 wedge Lemon and 1 inch knob of Ginger Root. Delicious!

On to the GAZPACHO GOODNESS, which eventually became Tomato Soup!

My neighbor and good friend, Lori Itule loaned me again her Dad’s vintage Champion Juicer. It is an awesome machine. She also brought me a case of tomatoes. Her family is in the produce business and if fruit is ripe, it is sometimes rejected by vendors. Their loss, my fortune. These tomatoes were bursting with flavor and made a fabulous Gazpacho Juice. The ingredients I used:

8 Large Tomatoes

1 lb. Cherry Tomatoes

3 Carrots

1 lb. bag of baby mixed Sweet Peppers

1 large English Cuke

1 onion

4 cloves garlic

2 stalks celery

Handful of Basil

Small piece of Ginger Root

1 cup V-8

Cumin-to taste

Italian seasoning-to taste

Salt-to taste

Voila! Gazpacho Goodness!

My husband was freaking out, thinking I would through away all that fabulous fiber from the juicing. That was not my intention as I have a really hard time throwing away or wasting any food whatsoever, so into the freezer it went. The fibrous remains from that Juice made about 3 cups. To that I added 3 cups water and cooked down the fiber (aka known as goop). I added about 1 tsp. salt, black pepper. Heated to a boil and then reduced to simmer for about 1 hour.

While that concoction was simmering I cut 6 of Lori’s tomatoes in half, lightly salted and roasted at 425 degrees until they were slightly charred.

If you don’t do the whole Juicing thing, I think this soup could be made with either Vegetable broth or Chicken broth, but these Gazpacho Juice trailings made it very special.

Once the fiber has simmered for about an hour, strain the fiber out of the stock. Push firmly to remove all moisture from the fiber. Then, once strained, add the roasted tomatoes to the stock, 1/2 tsp. dried sage, boil and lower to simmer and cook for about 1 hour more.

Taste for salt and if you are not using the Juice fiber, add a dash of cumin and Italian seasoning. Let cool and blend the soup. It will be quite thin so make a roux by heating 1 Tbsp. butter in a heavy-bottomed skillet over medium low heat. Add 1/4 cup flour and stir until the flour gets incorporated. It will be chunky and look like it will never come together. Add 3 Tbsp. Tomato Paste, keep stiring, and then add 1/2 cup cream. Finally you will have a nice, thick paste. Add to the blended soup and stir until it is completely mixed.

What’s good about this soup is that it is really tasty either hot or cold. We are still having some very hot days in Southern AZ so cold soup is good! Let me know if you try this with either Chicken or Vegetable Broth. Just add that little touch of cumin and Italian seasoning and I bet you will love it!

NEXT TIME I’M GOING TO TALK ABOUT A STEAK CALLED THOR’S HAMMER. I HAVE NEVER SEEN THIS CUT AND IT LOOKS CRAZY GOOD…OR MAYBE JUST CRAZY!

I HOPE YOU HAVE AS MUCH FUN IN THE KITCHEN AS I DO!