Tomato-Basil Soup

On a cold winter's day (back in Georgia moreso than Florida), there's nothing that I crave more than a warm bowl of soup. My favorite indulgence is La Madeleine's Tomato Basil soupe, which comes with an amazing amount of fat and calories - and not in a good way!

You can imagine how happy was I to come across a recipe for this soup in my February edition of Cooking Light that boasts half the fat but promises the same great taste. I admit I was skeptical, but after reading through the ingredient list and seeing that they substitued light cream cheese for heavy cream, I decided to give it a try. This substitution is made in a lot of their recipes, and I've had good results in the past. This time was no different - I got that rich velvety taste the original provides with an extra depth of flavor that comes from the fire roasted tomatoes. This version comes pretty darned close to the real thing if I do say so myself.

My garden is in the process of growing and my basil is just too young to pluck so I ended up using half a tube of basil paste that I had in the fridge. This worked as a great substitute and I would highly recommend it if necessary, even though those tubes can get pretty pricey. I also used my immersion blender since I love it so much, but I'd actually recommend that you do NOT do this for this recipe. My soup came out a little too chunky for my taste and I ended up putting it in my standard blender the next day with much better results.

My parents are coming to visit on Saturday and I'm going to whip up another batch alongside a grilled cheese BLT. I can't imagine a better pairing for the middle of February, even though it will be close to 80 degrees :)


Tomato-Basil Soup

Ingredients

• 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 1/2 cups prechopped onion
• 3 garlic cloves, chopped
• 3/4 cup chopped fresh basil
• 1 (28-ounce) can fire-roasted diced tomatoes, undrained
• 1/2 cup (4 ounces) 1/3-less-fat cream cheese, cut into cubes
• 2 cups 1% low-fat milk
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper

Heat olive oil in a saucepan over medium-high heat. Add onion; sauté 3 minutes. Stir in garlic; cook for 1 minute. Add basil and tomatoes; bring to a boil. Stir in cheese until melted.

Place mixture in blender, and blend until smooth. Return to pan; stir in milk, salt, and pepper. Return to medium-high; cook 2 minutes.

Adapted from Cooking Light