Tomato Bisque (same thing as soup)
Makes about 4 servings
1.5 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 small celery stalks, trimmed and finely chopped
1 medium leek (or onion. I can't find leeks around here, so I don't know how much difference using one or the other would make), cleaned and finely chopped
1 28-ounce can peeled, round (not plum) tomatoes, with their liquid.
1/8 cup [I think that's about 2 tablespoons? I don't actually measure this one] dry sherry
About 1/4 cup light cream
Seasonings! It calls for salt and pepper, but I generally just use basil.
1. Heat the butter in a heavy, large saucepan over medium heat just until it begins to brown in spots [or be lazy and just do it 'til it melts like I do]. Add the celery and leeks/onion and cook, stirring, until wilted--about 5minutes. Meanwhile, pour the tomatoes in a bowl. Pull out the core from each tomato and discard. Crush the tomatoes with your hands.
2-Add the sherry to the pan, bring to a boil, and cook until almost completely evaporated [I boil it for about 5 minutes and then go on, even if it's not evaporated]. Add the tomates and liquid and bring to a boil. Adjust the heat so the liquid is simmering. Cover and cook 20 minutes. Let sit off the heat until cooled to room temperature [it takes about half an hour for me].
3. Puree the soup in a food processor [or blender] until smooth. Pass the soup through a fine mesh sieve into a saucepan large enough to hold it. Use the back of a ladle to push as much of the soup as possible through the sieve and discard the leftover solids. [or skip the straining and just dump it in the pan. I like the texture it has; makes me feel like I'm eating food intsead of drinking it, lol].
Stir in the cream to taste. The soup can be prepared to this point up to two days in advance.
4. Reheat the soup and season to taste; serve hot.
I like to add a little sour cream and cheddar cheese to mine. I dumped a spoon of diced jalapenos in it once, too, which ended up being pretty good.