Why mess with a sure thing? Maybe because at least in the kitchen, there's always the possibility that a slightly better version is possible, even if it's not really necessary because the first version is just dandy. This approach clearly should not apply in relationships or investments, but can sometimes pay dividends in the culinary realm.
So when transforming yet another tray of farmers market tomatoes into what has essentially become a house soup that I pull out of the freezer as needed throughout the winter, it occurred to me to try swapping the usual canned tomato sauce in the recipe for a possibly more elevated version, one that is marinated rather than cooked.
Christos tomato-basil soup with feta
This recipe from the Christos Greek restaurant in Minneapolis was published in the Star Tribune in 1997, as provided by Gus Parpas and executive chef at the time, Mohamed Armeli. This appeared as part of a reader request feature the Taste section used to run, reaching out to restaurants on behalf of a reader query for a recipe for a favorite dish. (I would link to it, but it's not on the Strib site.) Christos is an Eat Street mainstay, opening in 1988 and surviving COVID closures and ICE mayhem. I see the soup still shows up on at least some daily special menus there. It's been awhile since I've been there, so I can't vouch for how faithful this is to the original; I know sometimes chefs needed to modify a recipe they supplied for practical home use.
I have long since deviated slightly from the original, which I am presenting as first reported, and will note that where applicable. For one thing, seeding tomatoes is just not anything I feel moved to do, but if they bother you, by all means knock yourself out. (I also generally don't peel tomatoes in most recipes, but in this one, you'll be happier if you do; otherwise you might want to pass the soup through a food mill or sieve after pureeing it.)
I also have two different approaches to this, depending on whether I'm making it to serve immediately, in which case I more or less follow the original, or whether I'm making this in peak fresh tomato season to freeze to pull out in winter to pair with panini, toasted cheese sandwiches or other warm comfort food. I find that avoiding basil and feta in the frozen soup base and adding it later yields better results in that case. I'll note the "freezer" method after the original.
Ingredients
¼ cup olive oil
1 cup chopped onion
½ teaspoon salt
1 bay leaf
3 cloves garlic, chopped
5 to 6 ripe tomatoes, cored, peeled, seeded and diced
3 cups chicken stock
½ cup fresh basil, chopped (or 3 generous stems, if using freezer approach), plus more for optional garnish
1 cup crumbled feta cheese
2 cups tomato sauce
Black pepper to taste
Method
Heat olive oil in a large saucepan. Add onions and cook until translucent. Stir in salt. Add bay leaf and garlic and cook for 2 more minutes. Add tomatoes and stock, bringing to a boil and cooking over high heat for 20 minutes, stirring often. Remove from heat and remove bay leaf. When slightly cooled, puree in a blender or food processor until smooth. You might need to do this in batches, depending on the size of your blender or processor. Pour soup back into saucepan and stir in basil, feta, tomato sauce and black pepper. Simmer for 20 minutes. Makes 6 servings.
Method for freezing
When adding the tomatoes and stock, add the basil stems at the same time. Remove them when you remove the bay leaf before pureeing. (This infuses the soup with the basil flavor up front but keeps the basil from darkening while frozen.) After pureeing the soup and returning it to the pan, stir in tomato sauce and heat through. Remove from heat, cool, and store in preferred serving sizes. When ready to use, thaw the soup, add feta and reheat. Serve garnished with sliced basil. (If I'm feeling time-pressed, sometimes I'll just add feta crumbles to individual soup bowls, top with warm soup and then the basil garnish; still tasty, but less creamy.)
Rating: However you choose to make it, there's a reason this is more or less our house soup. It's just smooth and creamy comfort, and pairs well with so many dishes. Only downside: If you get used to this, the canned tomato soup is just such a devastating disappointment.
Fresh tomato sauce
From "Olive Oil: Fresh Recipes from Leading Chefs" from Periplus Editions. This recipe was designed to swirl around the base when plating an elaborate dish that would no doubt be spectacular but would also definitely set you back several hours cooking prep time and even more doing the dishes. Maybe some day. It can be hard to psych yourself up for so much effort for one dish when you could make three quite nice meals in the same amount of time. One suspects a kitchen staff would help overcome that. Makes about a quart.
Ingredients
10 ripe plum tomatoes, diced
½ cucumber, peeled, seeded and diced
1 red pepper, diced
½ red chile
1 teaspoon sugar
1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
1 tablespoon olive oil
½ cup tomato juice
1 tablespoon tomato paste
1 to 2 teaspoons fresh basil
Method
Combine all ingredients in a large bowl. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 10 to 12 hours. Puree mixture and pass through a fine sieve. At this point you can stir in a bit more olive oil if desired.
Rating: As a tomato sauce, very fresh tasting. You definitely get the pepper and cucumber flavors coming through. If you're in the market for something with more flavor than a canned tomato sauce, it has some merit, and you can make this one ahead. I think it would be very nice with fish.
But as for using it the soup above, well, it was noticeable, but I would say it neither enhanced or detracted from the usual flavor overall, just made it different, so I'm sticking with opening the convenient can when it comes to this use case. So now I'm more certain about the sure thing.
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