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Butter-Braised Tomato Soup

Butter-Braised Tomato Soup

  • Makes
    4 servings
  • Cook Time
    40 minutes
  • Rating

In “The Essentials of Classic Italian Cooking,” Marcella Hazan shared her now-famous recipe for a sublimely delicious, remarkably simple sauce made with nothing more than tomatoes, onion and butter. This soup turns that sauce into a light meal. If you own an immersion blender, the soup can be pureed directly in the pot, but the texture won’t be as velvety as if processed in a conventional blender. We top individual bowlfuls with olive oil-toasted baguette slices, a dollop of pesto and shaved Parmesan. Homemade pesto is best, of course, but store-bought is fine; we’ve found, however, that refrigerated pesto tastes fresher than the shelf-stable type sold in jars. A Y-style vegetable peeler is the best tool for planing off wide, thin shavings from a chunk of Parmesan cheese.

Tip

Don’t use underripe tomatoes. The best soup is made with ripe, in-season tomatoes. However, in non-summer months, Campari tomatoes (also known as cocktail tomatoes) work almost as well. We don’t recommend cherry or grape tomatoes, as their tough skins don’t puree well.

Ingredients
  • 2

    tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

  • 8

    ¼-inch-thick baguette slices

  • Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

  • 5

    tablespoons salted butter, cut into pieces

  • 2 ½

    pounds ripe tomatoes, cored and cut into large chunks

  • 1

    quart low-sodium chicken OR vegetable broth

  • 1

    large white onion, chopped

  • Pesto (homemade or store-bought), to serve

  • Shaved Parmesan cheese, to serve

Step 1

In a large Dutch oven over medium-high, heat the oil until shimmering. Add the bread and cook until golden brown on both sides, about 2 minutes per side; transfer to a large plate and sprinkle with salt and pepper.

Step 2

To the same pot over medium-high, add the butter and tomatoes, then cook, stirring occasionally, until the tomatoes begin to break apart and the skins start to peel away, about 5 minutes.

Add the broth, onion and a large pinch each of salt and pepper. Bring to a boil, reduce to medium-low and cook, uncovered and stirring occasionally, until the onion has softened and the tomatoes have broken down, about 20 minutes; adjust the heat as needed to maintain a steady simmer.

Cool uncovered for about 5 minutes.

Step 3

Using a blender and working in 2 or 3 batches to avoid overfilling the jar, puree in batches until smooth.

Return the soup to the pot and reheat over medium, stirring occasionally.

Taste and season with salt and pepper.

Ladle the soup into bowls and top with pesto, toasted bread and shaved Parmesan.

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