The case for souping up your tomato soup

This recipe was originally published January 25, 2018.

There’s a reason why big bowls of tomato soup are the exact type of dish we crave on cold winter nights — and it’s not just the nostalgia factor. The childhood fave uses the simplest ingredients to warm us up from the inside out and isn’t a hassle to prepare, so really it delivers on just about every level. Bonus: it’s an easy meal to step up with special mix-ins or garnishes.

This lemon cream-topped take on the classic comes to us from Chef Alexandra Feswick, who’s been serving up her version to lucky guests of the Drake Devonshire all through Prince Edward County’s snowy season. And if you’re fortunate enough to be in the area this weekend, you can get it straight from the source, as Feswick will be spooning out piping hot bowls at the Devonshire’s 2nd annual hockey charity Barn Burner on Saturday, January 27th. Visit thedrake.ca/hockey for more information.

Ingredients

• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 2 tbsp butter
• ½ cup diced onion
• ¼ cup diced celery
• ¼ cup diced carrot
• 2 cloves garlic, crushed
• 1 sprig basil
• 1 can peeled whole tomatoes
• 1 ½ cups chicken or vegetable stock
• ½ cup 35% cream

Lemon cream:

• 1 cup sour cream or creme fresh
• Zest of ½ lemon

Garnish options:

• Lemon cream (see above)
• Garlic croutons
• Grana Padano
• Basil

Preparation

For lemon cream:

In a bowl, mix sour cream and lemon zest together for lemon cream.

For soup:

In a large pot, sauté onion, celery, carrot, garlic in olive oil and butter until tender. Add basil, tomatoes and stock and simmer for approximately 20 minutes.

Remove from heat and in batches, puree in a blender until smooth. Return pureed tomato soup to the pot and slowly mix in the 35% cream.

Return to heat on low, stirring continuously for approximately 10 minutes. Season with salt and pepper (adjust with a pinch of sugar if necessary to taste).

Garnish soup with lemon cream, garlic croutons, grana padano and basil.