Tuesday, October 9, 2012

Tomato Base Hearty Vegetable Stoup

Photo credit: rtdarch
I used to get a canned vegetable soup which had a tomato base, so yummy. We continue to make changes in the food we eat, and avoiding can goods, and other processed foods is a part of it. I have to admit I am bad about eating fruits and vegetables, but love soup. So, Saturday I decided to take a trip to the local produce market, and buy some tomatoes to make a tomato based vegetable soup.

Already planning for this I had been thinking how I was going to prepare the tomato base. Should I skin the tomatoes, and than cook them down in a pot? No, not feeling that idea, did something similar before, and it did not turn out good. Then the Lord gave me a revaluation, put the tomatoes whole into the blender. Brilliant!!! Previously juicing with tomatoes I knew this would work.

I don't have a Ninja, or any other fancy super chopping blender, it's just, well, a blender. If you are like me with just an ordinary blender you will not be able to put the whole tomato in. What I did is cut off the ends, and than cut it up into smaller pieces, they don't have to be real small. Adding the tomato a little at a time works great, so I added two pieces of tomato, put the blender on, and cut up more, adding them a little at a time. This worked great! I used 8 large tomatoes, and than seasoned it with garlic, pepper, salt, basil, red pepper, and thyme.

One thing I have noticed since I have been making stews, soups, and other foods in quantity is you really have to season it. You will need to add a lot of salt to break down the acidity in the tomatoes. This was hard for me to do because I am not a fan of what salt does to my body, (makes me bloat) and don't even like the taste of it, but it does make a difference in the taste.

After I added all my vegetables, I seasoned it again, let it cook for awhile, tasted, and added more. I continued this process until 1. the tomatoes did not over power the taste, and 2. it tasted the way I wanted it to. I like a hearty soup, none of that more broth than vegetables for me. Due to this the males in the house declared that I had not made soup, but stoup.  That is okay, it turned out great, and I have a great stoup full of vitamins and nutrition. By the way it is great as a natural laxative as well.

Be aware that as the tomato base cooks it will look pink, and froth will form on the top. I just felt the froth, but as it cooks the color will change to a red, and the froth disappear.

Photo credit: It's Your Life

Print this recipe

                                                     Hearty Vegetable Stoup


                                                                            8 large tomatoes

                                                                            1 lb of carrots chopped

                                                                            2 baking potatoes chopped

                                                                            1 whole stalk of celery chopped

                                                                            1/2 large zucchini

                                                                             1 medium green pepper

                                                                             1 medium onion

                                                                             1 1/2 cups of peas

                                                                                Seasonings

                                                                                   Pepper

                                                                                   Salt

                                                                                   Basil

                                                                                  Thyme

                                                                                  Red Pepper careful with this one very strong

                                                                                 Garlic

Blend the tomatoes until they turn to juice, add to crock pot, or stock pot. Add seasonings along with vegetables, as it cooks taste to the broth, if it is to acidity, or taste too much like tomato add more salt. Continue tasting, and adding seasonings as the stoup cooks. Because Red Pepper is so strong I only added it once, but it is your stoup now, so add as much as you like. Never be afraid to make a recipe your own, switch out the veggies, or seasonings if you wish. The purpose of this blog was to share what I did using a tomato base, happy cooking.

I will be adding this to the recipe page in the future, but for now I need to finish my amazing chili.


Yesterday I started my homemade chili using a tomato base, I am tickled to death at how it came out. I still need to add the meat, as the day got away from me, will post that when I get some time.



2 comments:

  1. I love soup, too. I had to laugh at your name for it, "stoup."

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  2. Looks delicious! Now I need to make some of my hamburger soup! lol THanks for sharing w/ thriving thursdays!

    ReplyDelete