Homemade Tomato Basil Soup

In my effort to cut down on my grocery bills I have put together a ton of recipes I want to try that won’t cost much. I bought a few cans of soup to bring to work (out of pure desperation) and they just fell short. I wasn’t satisfied with either the taste or the nutrients and I was hungry just a few hours later. I wondered if making it homemade would make a difference. I found this recipe on From Cupcakes to Caviar and slightly adapted it.

Ingredients

• 1 teaspoon olive oil
• 1/2 cup minced onion
• 1 teaspoon minced garlic
• 2 28 ounce cans crushed tomatoes
• 3 cups lo sodium chicken broth
• 1/3 cup minced fresh basil
• NuStevia (or 1/3 cup of sugar)
• 2 teaspoons fresh parsley
• 1/4 cup fresh grated Parmesan cheese
• 1/4 teaspoon oregano
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper

Directions

1. In a large pot over medium heat, saute the onion and garlic in the olive oil for about 3 to 4 minutes until softened.
2. Add the crushed tomatoes and chicken broth and bring mixture to a boil then reduce heat and simmer for 20 minutes. Turn heat off and let cool for up to an hour.
3. Pour half the mixture in a blender (hold lid down with a towel if the soup is at all hot so the lid doesn’t fly off). Blend on high speed for about a minute and pour into a large bowl. Do the same with the second half (I actually don’t do that because I like a little bit of texture in the soup). Add all the soup back to the pot and add the remaining ingredients. Bring the soup back up to a low bubble then reduce heat and let simmer for 20 minutes. Garnish with desired toppings.