Tomato Leek Soup

October 29, 2009

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The season for comfort food has started.  Just as comfort means different things to different people, comfort food is different for everyone.  For me, the thing that jumps to the top of my list is grilled cheese sandwiches and tomato soup.  Yes, I remember my mom making this for us (I now have the electric griddle she used to use) but when I really remember eating it was in camp.  I was always ravenous on those summer days; days that, living in the Pacific Northwest, weren’t always so summery.  The lunches where grilled cheese and tomato soup was served were some of my favorites.  The soup was just Campbell’s and the sandwiches were mostly bread with just a bit of cheese, and every single one of them was slightly burned.  But I didn’t care.  Dipping the sandwich in the hot soup was something that gave me great pleasure.

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Just after I started cooking for myself, I found a recipe for Tomato and Leek soup.  They suggested serving the soup with a grilled goat cheese sandwich made on egg bread.  A Dana Treat classic meal was born.  Over the years, I have served this soup with sandwiches on homemade challah probably 20 times.  It is Randy’s number one most favorite meal.  The soup is so good, it doesn’t need the sandwich, but it sure is a nice food memory for so many people.  You can, of course, make a regular grilled cheese sandwich with cheddar cheese and white bread and still have fun dipping.

Last weekend, I did another yoga retreat with my incredible friend Jen.  (You can see previous posts here and here.)  This time, unlike the past two, I was able to stay for the whole day – no brothers in the hospital and no birthday dinner waiting for me.  And what a treat it was.  From the moment I stepped in my car to head to the ferry, to the moment I drove off the ferry back in Seattle, it was an amazing day.  (There was a Sounders soccer game that evening, so the traffic-filled drive home was not amazing.)  The weather was beautiful, all the women there were so welcoming and wonderful, the yoga was intoxicating, and it was such an incredible treat to spend the day on myself.  Every busy person out there knows what I am talking about.

I didn’t have to think too hard about what to make for everyone’s lunch.  The trick was keeping it from Randy that I was making his favorite food and he wasn’t going to be able to have any of it.  He found out after the fact and made a big show of being the victim.  I make all this wonderful food for other people and not for him.  He said this as his leftover choices were roasted pear galette, a leek frittata, or a tomato and goat cheese tart.  Poor guy.

By the way, here is me and my new haircut.

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Tomato Leek Soup
Adapted from Bon Appétit
Serves 6-8

I almost always use an immersion blender when puréeing any kind of soup and it works great here.  So if you have one, use that.  I always use canned tomatoes in this soup.

2 tbsp. olive oil
1 cup coarsely chopped leeks
4 pounds chopped tomatoes
3 1/2 cups vegetables stock
1 1/2 cups white wine
1 7-ounce jar roasted red peppers, drained and chopped
1/2 cup chopped fresh basil
1/3 cup chopped fresh parsley
2 tbsp. fresh thyme leaves, or 2 tsp. dried
1/3 cup whipping cream
6 tbsp. tomato paste
4 tsp. minced garlic

Heat olive oil in large saucepan over medium heat.  Add chopped leeks; sauté until tender, about 10 minutes.  Add all the other ingredients.  Simmer one hour, stirring occasionally.  Coarsely purée using a food processor, blender, or immersion blender.  (Can be made one day ahead.  Cover and chill.)



23 Comments »

  1. Cute haircut! Campbell’s Tomato Soup and Grilled Cheese are a childhood memory for me, too — my mother always put a pat of butter in the soup.

    Comment by Kate @ Savour Fare — October 29, 2009 @ 7:34 pm

  2. I made a slow roasted tomato soup the other day. I will post the recipe soon. I want to try yours next though! And I love the new look!! Yea for shorter hair:) I am loving mine, so much easier to style!

    Comment by Maria — October 29, 2009 @ 7:36 pm

  3. cute cute! i love the picture of you in your element!

    Comment by Sprouted Kitchen — October 29, 2009 @ 8:59 pm

  4. I bet that hair cut is so easy! I don’t know if I could ever go that short. The shortest I’ve gone is how I am now when you saw me at BlogHer Food.

    I have fond memories of grilled cheese and tomato soup too. I just love it. One of my favorite grill cheeses is using provolone on sourdough with balsamic caramelized onions and mushrooms. So good! I am going to have to give this soup recipe a try!

    Comment by Katie @ goodLife {eats} — October 29, 2009 @ 9:11 pm

  5. The ingredients sound like they give the soup a fun burst of flavor that’s a little different than the average tomato soup. Have you ever made it without the roasted peppers? If so, how did it turn out?

    Comment by D. @ Outside Oslo — October 29, 2009 @ 9:23 pm

  6. Dig the hair!

    Comment by Sage — October 29, 2009 @ 9:38 pm

  7. This soup looks very tasty and rich…great for the cold weather, very comforting :-)

    Comment by Juliana — October 30, 2009 @ 12:26 am

  8. the dining hall at my college made grilled cheese and tomato soup for lunch every wednesday- definitely my favorite lunch of the week! I need to make this for my family (especially with your wonderful recipe)- I feel like I forgot about what a great combo it is!

    Comment by Emily Rose — October 30, 2009 @ 2:24 am

  9. sounds divine! both the soup and sandwiches and the yoga retreat! love the haircut too – so cute

    Comment by Josie — October 30, 2009 @ 3:52 am

  10. I can eat tomato soup year round – thanks! (PS: your hair looks super funky :-)

    Comment by Koek! — October 30, 2009 @ 11:26 am

  11. I have a feeling this will quickly become my number one favorite meal as well – thank you for sharing.
    It’s fun to see you in action and I love the new haircut!

    Comment by Yannik — October 30, 2009 @ 11:46 am

  12. Super cute you!! Love the haircut and the soup sounds perfect with a grilled cheese sandwich.

    Comment by kickpleat — October 30, 2009 @ 4:18 pm

  13. Ooh I have tomato soup and grilled cheese on the menu for this wknd- so funny! I am going to see if I have all the ingredients to try yours. Love the new haircut!

    Comment by fresh365 — October 30, 2009 @ 5:56 pm

  14. I had to do a double take on that photo!
    because it looks like you are wearing a super hero cape and have feelers on your head (like a bug)…..so I thought, what a cute costume!
    and then I realized that the feelers belong to the bug in the backround!
    I came looking for “treats” for Halloween on Dana Treat!
    Happy Halloween!
    I love your new do!

    Comment by Stacey Snacks — October 30, 2009 @ 9:15 pm

  15. Love the idea of using leeks in tomato soup. I am totally making a batch of this soup this weekend – I’m very into soups for work lunches these days!

    Funky hair! I totally did not realize that was you at first.

    Comment by Hilary — October 30, 2009 @ 10:47 pm

  16. Hi Dana , this soup sounds fantastic and an making it today for my catering , just one question , I am assuming you add the whipping cream at the end after you have pureed the soup? OR do I have it wrong !
    thanks
    GG

    Comment by Dimitra Alexakos — November 2, 2009 @ 1:56 pm

  17. I never liked tomato soup growing up. I didn’t like soup at all actually I think. I remember my mom asking me what kind of soup I’d like and I said cheese, so she went and found a recipe and… I didn’t like it. Poor mom! I haven’t had tomato soup in forever. I should give it another try!

    Comment by Ashley — November 3, 2009 @ 1:48 am

  18. Love this picture of you cooking!

    Comment by The Leftoverist — November 3, 2009 @ 5:35 am

  19. […] The season for comfort food has started.  Just as comfort means different things to different people, comfort food is different for everyone.  For me, the thing that jumps to the top of my list is grilled cheese sandwiches and tomato soup … [read more] […]

    Pingback by Tomato Leek Soup « Foodshots — November 3, 2009 @ 7:42 pm

  20. Hi Dana, I’m a dana too! :)

    Beautiful blog, I love so many of your recipes. I’m a vegetarian and have already spotted 4 recipes in my first couple minutes here browsing that I want to make for dinner tonight haha
    This soup looks yummy, I love fresh tomato soup. I often make it with roasted tomatoes (esp here in Canada when the tomatoes have zippo taste) and this recipe sounds fantastic. I like the addition of leeks and roasted peppers too…

    Cheers!
    Dana

    Comment by Dana — November 16, 2009 @ 10:29 pm

  21. […] recipes like Goat Cheese & Pistachio Stuffed Dates, Oatmeal Chocolate Chunk Cookies and Tomato Leek Soup visit http://www.danatreat.com. Share […]

    Pingback by Featured Food Blogger Friday: Dana Treat | yumGLOSS :: Food. Recipes. Entertaining. — June 18, 2010 @ 5:01 pm

  22. This soup is now our favorite tomato, we used fresh tomatoes out of the garden, little more work but it was well worth it. At the end in each bowl we tossed in a few croutons and a dash of parmesan, oh my, this recipe is a keeper, thank you for sharing!!!

    Comment by Mark & Melanie — August 28, 2019 @ 2:00 pm

  23. Thank you so much for this lovely comment! I am just signing on to this site for the first time in 6.5 years, so wading through lots of comments. I have been making that soup for over 20 years and I still love it so much! I have tried others, and there are many good ones, but that one is the best. Thanks for reaching out.

    Comment by dana — June 3, 2020 @ 11:23 pm



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