La Madeline’s Tomato Basil Soup...

When I worked in downtown Fort Worth, once a month, I would take my employees out to lunch at La Madeline. La Madeline’s is a French Country Café, which has locations in Texas, Louisiana, Virginia, Maryland, Washington DC and Georgia.

One of my favorite items to order was the Tomato Basil Soup. Before tasting this soup, I did not know tomato soup could taste so wonderful!

This soup is so popular; in 1994, the Fort Worth Star Telegram food editor said she would get a minimum of 10 calls per week from people looking for this recipe. Oh yeah, you take a spoonful of this cream red soup in your mouth, and sigh with satisfaction it is that good.

You can use canned tomatoes for this soup, but if you have fresh, it will make a big difference. Make sure you also have a good fresh French Bread to eat along with the soup!

Ingredients:

4 cups fresh tomatoes, cored, peeled, and chopped (8-10) or canned whole tomatoes, crushed
4 cups tomato juice (or part vegetable or part chicken stock)
12-14 basil leaves, washed fresh
1 cup heavy cream
1/4 lb sweet unsalted butter
salt
1/4 teaspoon cracked black pepper
lemon juice (optional)

Directions:

Combine tomatoes, juice/and or stock in saucepan.

 Simmer 30 minutes.

 Purees, along with the basil leaves, in small batches, in blender, food processor or use an immersion hand blenders. Return to saucepan and add cream and butter, while stirring, over low heat. Garnish with basil leaves and serve with your favorite bread.