Tomato Basil soup

The Tomato Basil Soup is rich, creamy and truly satisfying. Made with juicy wine ripe tomatoes, this soup has fresh basil flavor along with hint of garlic. It is very easy to make and takes less than 15 mins. This soup can be made ahead of time and serves as an appetizer for the crowd.

 

Ingredients:

• 4 Ripe tomatoes
• 1 tsp dried Basil
• 7-8 fresh Basil leaves chopped
• 1 cup Water
• 1 tbsp Corn starch + 2 tbsp water
• 1/4 tsp black pepper powder
• salt to taste
• 1/4 cup chopped onion
• 2 cloves of garlic minced
• 1 tsp grated ginger
• 1 tbsp butter
• 2 tsp sugar

Preparation:

1.  Boil tomatoes in a pressure cooker and blend it into a purée in the blender once they are cooled down.
2. Heat butter in a pan, add ginger, garlic and sauté . Add onions and sauté them until they are cooked.
3. Pour tomato purée in pan and add water. Boil the soup for 2-3 minutes. 
4. Add salt, sugar, basil leaves and pepper powder.
5. Mix corn starch and water and mix until no lumps. Add this slurry to the soup and let it boil for another couple of mins.
6. Serve warm soup topped with more basil and bread toast on the side.

Notes:

• You can use vegetable broth instead of water.
• You can use heavy cream to make it more creamy.
• Increase the quantity of dried basil by 1 tsp if you do not have fresh basil.