Freezing tomato soup ??

[smokeandashes]

Tyler Florence has a Roasted Tomato Soup recipe that looks wonderful but I'm not yet in the mood for soup just yet but by the time I am I am afraid the tomatoes will be done. So here is my question, What would be the best way to freeze this recipe? I already figured I would leave out the cream and just add it when I warmed it back up but does anyone have any other suggestions.


Roasted Tomato Soup Recipe courtesy Tyler Florence

2 1/2 pounds fresh tomatoes (mix of fresh heirlooms, cherry, vine and plum tomatoes)
6 cloves garlic, peeled
2 small yellow onions, sliced
Vine cherry tomatoes for garnish, optional
1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 quart chicken stock
2 bay leaves
4 tablespoons butter
1/2 cup chopped fresh basil leaves, optional
3/4 cup heavy cream, optional

Preheat oven to 450 degrees F.
Wash, core and cut the tomatoes into halves. Spread the tomatoes, garlic cloves and onions onto a baking tray. If using vine cherry tomatoes for garnish, add them as well, leaving them whole and on the vine. Drizzle with 1/2 cup of olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Roast for 20 to 30 minutes, or until caramelized.

Remove roasted tomatoes, garlic and onion from the oven and transfer to a large stock pot (set aside the roasted vine tomatoes for later). Add 3/4 of the chicken stock, bay leaves, and butter. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer for 15 to 20 minutes or until liquid has reduced by a third.

Wash and dry basil leaves, if using, and add to the pot. Use an immersion blender to puree the soup until smooth. Return soup to low heat, add cream and adjust consistency with remaining chicken stock, if necessary. Season to taste with salt and freshly ground black pepper. Garnish in bowl with 3 or 4 roasted vine cherry tomatoes and a splash of heavy cream.

[funniegrrl]

I make the CL Tomato Balsamic soup semi-frequently. Since there's just me in the house, I eat it for a meal or two then freeze the rest in portions. There are no tricks, really. That recipe also calls for cream (fat-free half-and-half, actually) but I usually don't add it anyway, preferring to just add a dollop of sour cream or yogurt at serving. Still, I don't know why you couldn't add the cream before freezing.

[charley]

What would be the best way to freeze this recipe? I already figured I would leave out the cream and just add it when I warmed it back up but does anyone have any other suggestions.

That's all I would do differently.

Btw, here's a thread on the same recipe.

[Canice]

Sorry if this is too obvious, but I would be careful to try not to let any air into the container. I like freezer bags because you can squeeze it all out; when using plastic containers I always put a heavy layer of plastic wrap covering the soup itself before placing the lid on.

That Tyler Florence recipe is the BEST! I've made it three times this summer, and will make a batch to freeze on the weekend because great tomatoes will be gone before long. And I'm looking forward to a nice rainy day with a bowl of delicious cream of tomato soup and the requisite grilled cheese sandwich. Mmmm.

[zackaboo]

Thanks so much for reminding me that I wanted to try this recipe. The heirloom tomatoes at Wegmans look great right now and I will have to pick some up next time I am there.

[Canice]

Meant to say: for some reason he lists basil as optional -- well, OK, everything in a recipe is optional, but I wouldn't leave it out.

[Anne]

You could just freeze the tomatoes and make soup later. I made this discovery last fall when I didn't get all the groceries put away. I left the tomatoes on the porch overnight - solid rocks the next morning - I threw them in the freezer as they were and made soup a couple weeks later.

[charley]

Anne, but you can't roast frozen tomatoes. I'm sure that's where a lot of the flavor comes from in this soup.

[Anne]

I roasted them - not sure if the flavor would have been different if they had been fresh.

[charley]

Sure it would! Roasting intensifies flavor.

[Anne]

I based my soup on the slow roasted tomatoes (thawed tomatoes enough to slice in half and then put in the oven mostly still frozen) from the Rebar cookbook and then added whatever veges I had on hand, a little balsamic, and some basil. The tomatoe taste really shines through with this method.

SLOW-ROAST TOMATOES

10 tomatoes, halved
¼ cup extra virgin oil
1 tsp salt
¼ tsp cracked pepper
2 Tbsp minced thyme or rosemary

Pre-heat oven to 250F. Slice tomatoes in half and arrange, cut side up, on a parchment-lined baking tray. Brush lightly with olive oil and sprinkle with salt, pepper and chopped fresh herbs.

Roast tomatoes for up to 4 hours, or until they are visibly dehydrated yet still meaty. Cool and refrigerate up to one week.