Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 15 minutes
Total Time: 25 minutes
Ingredients:
- 2 sm. tomatoes, cut into chunks
- 4 - 5 cloves garlic; smashed, peeled, and coarsely chopped
- 1/2 bell pepper; seeded and chopped
- 3 Tbsp. olive oil
- 1 cup chicken stock
- 1/2 tsp. salt
- 2 tsp. fresh thyme leaves
- Black pepper, to taste
- 2 slices peasant bread
- 2 Tbsp. basil; chiffonade*
Preparation:
1. In a food processor, pulse the tomatoes, 2/3 of the chopped garlic and the bell peppers until coarsely chopped.
2. In a medium saucepan, heat the oil over medium heat.
3. Scrape the vegetables into the pan and cook, stirring occasionally, for 10 minutes.
4. Stir in the chicken stock, thyme, remaining garlic and salt. Bring to a boil.
5. Reduce heat to low and simmer for 5 minutes. Season with pepper. The soup can be made ahead to this point and refrigerated for up to 2 days.
6. Heat the oven to 225F. Lay the bread directly on the middle rack and bake for 15 to 20 minutes to dry it out.
7. (If it has been refrigerated, quickly bring the soup back to a boil.) Place a slice of bread in the bottom of two soup bowls. Pour the soup over the bread and garnish with fresh basil.
*Note: To chiffonade, roll several basil leaves lengthwise into a cigar shape. The slice crosswise into thin strips. Fluff.