Southwestern Tomato and Roasted Red Pepper Soup
Hearty, healthy and super flavorful, this soup is loaded with lots of great veggies and a burst of south-of-the-border flavor. The avocado salsa takes it right over the top!
Servings: 8 generous servings
Calories:
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 1 large onion cut in half and each half quartered
- 1 pound carrots roughly chopped (when I'm feeling lazy, I just use a bag of the mini carrots- works well with no peeling or chopping involved)
- 2 stalks celery cut in 2-inch pieces
- 1 teaspoon dried basil
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- 2 teaspoon cumin
- 2 teaspoons ground coriander*
- ½ teaspoon chili powder
- 1 tablespoon brown sugar
- 8 cloves garlic
- 2 14-15- ounce cans diced fire-roasted canned tomatoes (if you can't find fire-roasted, don't worry, just use regular canned, diced tomatoes.)
- 5 cups low sodium chicken broth
- 1 12- ounce jar roasted red peppers*
- ½ cup cilantro stems and leaves packed (Don't skip the cilantro, it adds delicious flavor, even if you're not a cilantro lover. You'd never know there was cilantro included.)
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- ½ batch Avocado Salsa You might want to make a whole batch of this wonderful salsa. It's great for scooping with tortilla or pita chips.
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 450˚F. Line a sheet pan with foil for easy clean up. Spray the foil lightly with cooking spray.
- Combine onion, carrots and celery on the prepared sheet pan. Sprinkle with the basil, oregano, cumin, coriander, chili powder and brown sugar. Drizzle all over with the olive oil and stir with a non-metal** spatula to combine. Tuck the garlic cloves under some of the other veggies near the center to protect them from burning.
- Roast for 10 minutes then remove from oven and stir again with a non-metal spatula. Again, try to keep garlic cloves near the center and under the other veggies. Return to oven for another 10 minutes.
- While veggies are roasting, combine tomatoes, chicken broth, drained roasted red peppers, cilantro and kosher salt in a large Dutch oven or stockpot. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat then reduce to a steady simmer.
- When veggies are finished roasting, add them to the pot with tomato mixture. I just pick up the long edges of the foil and transfer the roasted veggies to the pot. Lay the foil flat on a work surface and scrape any of the spice/oil mixture that is left on the foil. That's the good stuff!
- Add the salt and return to a steady simmer, cover with lid slightly ajar, and cook for 20 minutes.
- Remove from heat and purée with an immersion blender or a regular blender. If using a regular blender, blend in small batches and crack the blender lid slightly (steam can build up and cause soup to splatter all over the place) or remove the center cap from the lid and cover with a small funnel, a kitchen towel or several thicknesses of paper toweling.
- Return soup to pot, (if using a regular blender) and keep warm. Serve in shallow bowls with a scoop of Avocado Salsa.
