Tomato- Basil soup

I could never get enough of Tomato soup, or for that matter any soup. How about you? Soups are known for their healing goodness, and I for that matter never leave a chance when I get to have some soup :) ....I recently had Tomato Basil soup which V had bought from Shaw's when I was not in good health. We both relished it as it was freshly made. Since then I was planning to make it once my homegrown tomatoes ripened. It was just last week that they entered my soup pot. I decided to add Basil flower/stalks/leaves from my garden. It was indeed a proud moment for me to make something like this using produce from my garden :) I am sure all gardening enthusiasts would agree with me on that one.

Recently V decided to grill some chicken, as the weather was perfect. He did a great job at it , and I am proud to show off his grilling skills :) Here are some of the photos that were taken:

Coming to the recipe, its very simple and easy to make. I haven't strained any of the contents I added to the soup as I didn't want to lose any goodness that I added to it. If you have a kitchen gadget that can puree the contents of the soup, it makes it even more easy. I used a hand blender which I use a lot to puree cooked food in some dishes. Here goes the recipe:

Makes 2 full bowls (cereal bowls ) of soup :)
 Ingredients:

1. Tomatoes  sliced in quarters : 3 medium tomatoes
2.  Onion finely chopped : 1 medium
3.  Garlic minced : 4 cloves
4. Ginger minced : 1/2 teaspoon
5.  Basil leaves chopped : 1/2 cup 
6. Green Chilly minced : 1 long or 2 medium ones
7.  Milk : 1/4 cup
8.  Water: 1 cup
9. Butter : 2 tablespoons
10. Cornflour/Cornstarch mixed with tap water : 1 tablespoon Cornstarch mixed with 3 tablespoons of water
11. Salt and Pepper
12.  Grated Cheese and Basil flower stalk  for garnish

Method:

•  In a deep vessel on medium high heat, add butter. When butter melts, add the Green Chilly and stir fast
•  Add the Garlic and Ginger , give it a good stir , and follow it with adding Onion. Reduce fire to medium and stir until the Onion turns pale and very lightly brown, don't allow it to caramelize :)
•  Now add the Tomatoes and stir well for a minute. Add the Basil Leaves. Add some salt , give it another stir and turn heat to medium low, cover the vessel and let it cook for two minutes or until everything in it turns mushy. 
• Allow the contents to cool. Puree the contents. Then transfer them back to the vessel on medium low fire, when bubbles start appearing, add 1 cup water and give it a stir, cover the vessel and let it come to a boil. 
•  Reduce the fire to the lowest setting, and check for salt.Stir after checking for salt
• Now add Milk and stir for a minute. Then switch off the fire. Add the Basil flower stalk and cover the pot/vessel. Leave like this for a minute so that flavors mix. 
• Serve with some grated cheese on top along with crackers or a grilled sandwich :) yummmm :)
• Done :)

Luv,
Roopa :)