T.W.O. spent some time in Amsterdam over the Holidays and discovered how amazing their tomato soup was.  The Dutch made it the right way – hearty, full of flavor and fresh tasting.  Each afternoon we escaped the cold and went into a café ordered some mint tea and a bowl of soup.  Most (well maybe all) of the time the tea was followed by a glass of craft ‘bier’ that was on tap…Heineken, Witte  Brouwerij ‘t IJ, Amstel, the list goes on.  We had to do as the locals do! Anyways, we got home to the States and decided to recreate the tastes and flavor of the tomato soup in our own kitchen.  In our eyes, we pretty much perfected the Dutch recip.  We were missing one thing though…the ambiance.  There is no place like Europe!

Hope you have fun making the soup; we did!  Also, make sure to check the blog next week we will be featuring a portion of our Europe trip! #BritTwoDutch

Ingredients
-3 lbs fresh tomatoes (we used tomatoes on a vine)
– 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
– 2 cups sweet onion, chopped
– 1 cup carrots, peeled and diced
– 1 cup celery, chopped
– 2 Tablespoons garlic, chopped
– 2 bay leaves
– 1 cup fresh basil,chopped
– 2 large sprigs thyme
– 2 large stalks Italian flat-leaf parsley
– 1 cup vegetable broth (low sodium)
– 1 15oz canned tomato sauce
– 1 Tablespoon sugar
-5  Tablespoons tomato paste, divided
–  Salt
–  Pepper
– Red pepper flakes

Instructions
1.  Take the tomatoes and cup in half.  Remove the seeds using a stainer making sure to save the juice in a bowl underneath.  Place the tomatoes in another bowl.  Take the liquid left in the strainer bowl and add to the tomato halves.
2. In a large heavy bottomed pot, add olive oil, onions, carrots, celery, garlic and bay leaves. Cook over medium high for five minutes. Add tomato halves with juice.
3. Add half of the fresh cut up basil. Tie whole thyme and whole parsley together with twine and place in pot.
4. Add broth, tomato juice, sugar, 3 tablespoons tomato paste, salt and pepper and bring to a boil. Lower to a simmer, cover and cook 30 minutes.
5. Remove and discard bay leaves, thyme and parsley.
6.Add second half of basil to the soup. Stir in pepper flakes and butter. With a food processor, blend soup until completely pureed.
7. Add the soup back into the pot and cook for 10 minutes.  (If you like it thick, add the remaining two tablespoons of tomato paste. )

Happy Cooking,