Cream of Tomato Soup with Anchovies
Cream soup with canned tomatoes. A few anchovies, some bread, the best olive oil in the pantry... that's what it took to make it tasty and creamy. Al...most like summer 😋
We've stocked up, isolated ourselves, we're washing our hands. There's something else important. To focus on staying healthy and in the best physical shape. Now we need the best immune system possible. For that we need the most diverse food, not forgetting vegetables and legumes. Whether canned or frozen. The temptation is high now to switch to "comfort food" in the sense of too many fried foods, lots of dough, lots of sweets. Which will help our mood, but not our health and immune system. We also need vitamins. So pay attention to this aspect, plan simple but varied menus.
Ingredients
2 cans of tomatoes (400g each)
1 medium onion
2 large garlic cloves
2 anchovy fillets (in oil)
1/4 teaspoon dried thyme, crumbled (or oregano)
1 bay leaf
1/2 slice bread (just the crumb)
1/2 tablespoon balsamic vinegar (or balsamic cream)
50ml extra virgin olive oil (the best one, for salads)
salt, black pepper
Anchovy Croutons
2 slices of bread (can be older)
2-3 tablespoons oil from the anchovies
1 large garlic clove
black pepper
Servings: 4 (approx 3 ladles / serving)
Calories: 200 cal / serving (soup)
How to prepare cream of tomato soup with anchovies
- For croutons: tear or cut bread into pieces. Briefly sauté the sliced garlic in the anchovy oil and let it sit until you finish the soup, to infuse.
- Put 1 tablespoon of oil in a pot. Sauté the diced onion over low heat until softened. Add the crushed garlic and sauté for another minute. Remove the pot from heat and add the crumbled thyme (crumble it between your fingers when adding), the bay leaf broken in half, the chopped anchovy fillets and a little chili only if you want slightly spicy soup. Stir in the hot oil.
- Put the pot back on heat and add the tomatoes crushed with a fork (with all the juice) and 2 cups of water. Break the bread crumb into the liquid. Grind black pepper and don't add salt yet (anchovies are quite salty).
- Bring to a boil, lower the heat and simmer covered for 20 minutes. Taste for salt now and add if you feel it needs more. Remove the bay leaf.
- Blend the pot contents in a blender or food processor. When smooth, slowly pour in the vinegar while the processor is mixing. Then slowly pour in the rest of the oil. Use the tastiest oil (as sweet and fruity as possible), it will give good flavor to the soup.
- Back to the croutons: pour the aromatic oil over the bread pieces and mix quickly to distribute. Grind lots of black pepper and mix again. Taste and if needed sprinkle a little salt.
- Spread the bread in a baking tray (lined with parchment paper) and bake at 170C (340F) for about 10 minutes, but check occasionally and leave until the bread is crispy and nicely browned. Transfer the croutons to a bowl. If you want smaller croutons, you can crumble them now, they crumble easily.
- Serve warm soup sprinkled with aromatic croutons.
