Days are getting colder here in Germany and it is time to enjoy a filling soup. It is our habit to have a soup at dinner time during the cold seasons until days get warmer again. I usually make a soup using whatever vegetables are in season and to adjust smoothly to a real “wintry” kind of soup, I like to make tomato soups first. Warming yet light, they are perfect to transition from the summery salads. At the moment, tomatoes are quite cheap. I tend the use the ripest ones I can find and since I don’t live any longer next to a market nearby which sells the squishy ones off cheap, I buy a whole crate of them a good few days ahead and I ripen them at home.

The easiest and tastiest tomato soup recipe I like to follow is the one from Jamie Oliver’s 30 minutes Meals cookbook which is another staple in my kitchen. This book is as practical as it is beautiful, showing that with a bit of preparation, the right equipment and some organization, hearty, delicious, quick meals are prepared within minutes (though I would not say that a whole meal shown in the book could be made in 30 minutes, unless you are as fast as a chef as Jamie!). This tomato soup recipe makes for a rustic soup where we enjoy all the wonderful ripe tomato flavors!

Preheat the oven to 200°C/400°F/ gas 6. Peel 2 to 3 garlic cloves and cut 2 red onions into big wedges. Halve and lay approximately 2 kg tomatoes in a large roasting tray, cut-side up, then scatter over the garlic cloves and onion wedges. Sprinkle with oregano (optional), season with salt and pepper, and drizzle with olive oil. Roast in the hot oven for about half an hour, or until the tomatoes are soft and sticky.

Scrape everything from the tray into a large saucepan. Roughly chop and add basil stalks with most of the leaves. Simmer for a couple of minutes. Add a splash of balsamic
 vinegar to the soup, then blitz with a hand blender until fairly smooth.

Ladle into bowls, drizzle with extra virgin olive oil and scatter with the remaining basil leaves if you wish!Wha

What about you? What is your favorite soup to transition to cold days? What is your best tomato soup recipe?