Roasted Tomato Garlic Coconut Soup

Right before Thanksgiving, the baby and I took the train to Kansas to visit my family.  I had six beautiful Roma tomatoes in the house right before we left, and I knew that no one would eat them while I was gone.  I didn't want them to go to waste, so I cut them in half, threw them into a bag, and tossed them in the freezer.

A couple of days ago, I decided to pull out the bag and roast the tomatoes with some garlic cloves.  I still wasn't sure what I was going to do with them, so I put them in a Tupperware and put them in the fridge.  Yesterday I came home freezing half to death and decided that I wanted soup.  It's a rare occasion that I eat soup from a can.  We've already established how I feel about excess sodium and ingredients I can't pronounce.  Luckily I had some perfectly roasted tomatoes ready to go.

I know the combination of garlic, tomato, and coconut sounds strange, but it's really not.  The coconut milk gives it a silky, creamy texture, and it blends so nicely with the rest of the spices in the soup.  This recipe makes two small servings (or one great big one; I ate it all, all by myself!), so feel free to adjust proportions accordingly.

Roasted Tomato Garlic Coconut Soup

Ingredients:

• 6 Roma tomatoes, halved
• 3 large garlic cloves, peeled
• Olive Oil
• 1 cup good quality vegetable broth (I make my own)
• 1 TBSP minced dehydrated onion
• 1 tsp cayenne pepper (more or less to taste)
• 3/4 cup full fat coconut milk
  

Directions:

1. Spray baking sheet with olive oil and lay tomatoes and garlic cloves in single layer.
2. Spray tomatoes and garlic with olive oil, salt and pepper to taste, and roast for 45 minutes in a 400 degree oven.
3. Add veggie broth, tomatoes and garlic, and minced onion to medium sized sauce pan.  Bring to a boil.  Reduce heat to low and simmer for 30 minutes.
4. CAREFULLY transfer to a blender (or use an immersion blender if you have one) and blend to desired consistency.  I made mine smooth, because I was sharing it with the baby.  You can leave some chunks if you'd like.
5. Pour soup back into pot and add the coconut milk and cayenne pepper.
6. Simmer for another 15 to 20 minutes.
   

Enjoy!