Creamy Tomato Soup *** KETO (Ina Garten)

This is my favorite tomato soup recipe.  You will never want to or even be able to eat tomato soup out of a can again.  The corn syrup they use is, well, just plain gross.  This is so fresh and wonderful.  I make a big batch in the summer when tomatoes are inexpensive and in season, then I freeze batches in quart sized bags.  Make sure to lay them flat in the freezer and leave a little room for expansion.

Serves: 5

Ingredients

• 3 tablespoons good olive oil
• 1 1/2 cups chopped red onions (2 onions)
• 2 carrots, unpeeled and chopped
• 1 tablespoon minced garlic (3 cloves)
• 4 pounds vine-ripened tomatoes, coarsely chopped (5 large)
• 1 1/2 teaspoons sugar or xylitol
• 1 tablespoon tomato paste
• 1/4 cup packed chopped fresh basil leaves, plus julienned basil leaves, for garnish
• 3 cups chicken stock, preferably homemade
• 1 tablespoon kosher salt
• 2 teaspoons freshly ground black pepper
• 3/4 cup heavy cream / unsweetened almond milk
• Croutons, for garnish

Instructions

Heat the olive oil in a large, heavy-bottomed pot over medium-low heat. Add the onions and carrots and saute for about 10 minutes, until very tender. 

Add the garlic and cook for 1 minute. Add the tomatoes, sugar, tomato paste, basil, chicken stock, salt, and pepper and stir well. 

Bring the soup to a boil, lower the heat, and simmer, uncovered, for 30 to 40 minutes, until the tomatoes are very tender.

Add the cream to the soup and process it through a food mill into a bowl, discarding only the dry pulp that's left. OR add to a blender in SMALL batches with a towel over the top - be CAREFUL it is hot!

Reheat the soup over low heat just until hot and serve with julienned basil leaves and/or croutons.

* If you choose to freeze it in quart sized bags, do not add the cream.  Blend it all together and when ready to eat, thaw out and add cream/almond milk when ready to eat. 

Source:  Ina Garten