Roasted Tomato Soup with Basil and Thyme

Those heirloom tomatoes from the Farmer's Market on Saturday finally made into a soup tonight. And it was worth the wait!  After sun-ripening on my warm kitchen counter for a few more days, I washed and sliced them, slid them onto a baking sheet, drizzled olive oil and garlic chunks over them, then some salt and pepper and roasted them for an hour at 375 - 400 degrees.  The smell was heavenly! Following is a recipe by Ina Garten from her Barefoot Contessa cookbook,  which I followed, sort of.


Ingredients
3 pounds ripe plum tomatoes, cut in half lengthwise
1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons good olive oil
1 tablespoon kosher salt
1 1/2 teaspoons freshly ground black pepper
2 cups chopped yellow onions (2 onions)
6 garlic cloves, minced
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
1 (28-ounce) canned plum tomatoes, with their juice
4 cups fresh basil leaves, packed
1 teaspoon fresh thyme leaves
1 quart chicken stock or water

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Toss together the tomatoes, garlic, 1/4 cup olive oil, salt, and pepper. Spread the tomatoes in 1 layer on a baking sheet and roast for 45 minutes.

In a cast iron skillet over medium heat, saute the onions with 2 tablespoons of olive oil, the butter, and red pepper flakes for 10 minutes, until the onions start to brown. Put the onions, canned tomatoes, roasted tomatoes and basil leaves into a blender and pulse lightly for a few times until mixture is slightly smooth but still a little chunky.

In a stock pot, mix the chicken stock and tomatoe mixture. Bring to a boil and simmer uncovered for 40 minutes. Taste for seasonings. Serve hot or cold.