a nice change. [roasted tomato soup w. lemon arugula pesto]

October 18th, 2012 by | comments

Since having dental surgery last week, my diet has consisted of frozen yogurt and soup. But one can only eat ice cream and Ramen noodles for so long. So, after a few days of recovering, I decided it was time to get back in the kitchen and make soup that I would actually enjoy. This gourmet tomato soup with lemon arugula pesto sure did the trick. I’d never made arugula pesto before, and I’ve got to say, I might even prefer it to basil pesto!


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roasted tomato soup w. lemon arugula pesto
Prep time: 
Cook time: 
Total time: 
 
Ingredients
  • Soup recipe:
  • 5 large, ripe tomatoes, cored
  • ¼ cup olive oil
  • 2 shallots, finely diced
  • 2 cloves garlic, minced
  • 2 (12 oz.) cans crushed tomatoes
  • 1 tsp. salt
  • ⅛ tsp. sugar
  • ½ cup heavy whipping cream
  • ¼ cup good-quality vodka
  • Dash of cayenne
  • Salt and pepper, to taste
  • Arugula pesto recipe:
  • ½ cup pine nuts, toasted
  • 8 oz. baby arugula
  • 2 cloves garlic, coarsely chopped
  • ½ tsp. salt
  • 1 tbsp. freshly squeezed lemon juice
  • ¾-1 cup extra-virgin olive oil
  • ½ cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
Instructions
  1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
  2. For the soup: Set the cored tomatoes on a foil-lined, rimmed baking sheet. Drizzle with 2 tbsp. olive oil and roast until wrinkly and skin starts to peel, about 30 minutes. While the tomatoes cool, heat the remaining 2 tbsp. olive oil in a small skillet. Add shallots and garlic and saute over medium heat until golden brown and caramelized, 10-15 minutes. Set aside.
  3. When the tomatoes are cool enough to handle, peel off the skins. Roughly dice the tomatoes.
  4. In a large pot, add the roasted tomatoes, shallots, garlic, crushed tomatoes (with juice), 1 tsp. salt and sugar. Using an immersion blender, mix soup until smooth. Stir in cream and vodka. Season with a dash or two of cayenne and salt and pepper.
  5. For the pesto: Toast the pine nuts, stirring occasionally, in a skillet set on medium heat until they turn golden brown, about 4 minutes. Combine the arugula, pine nuts, 2 cloves garlic, ½ teaspoon salt, and lemon juice in the jar of a blender or the work bowl of a food processor fitted with the metal blade, then slowly add in the olive oil through the feed tube and process. Transfer the pesto to a bowl and stir in the Parmesan.
  6. Serve soup hot, and top with arugula pesto. Mix pesto with soup, if desired.
Notes
Recipe from Epicurious.

 

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