Dairy free option: skip the Parmesan and use coconut milk instead of cream or half and half
8large carrots, peeled and sliced (1/4 inch thick)
5lbsof the biggest juiciest tomatoes you can find, diced by hand or in the food processor
3clovesgarlic, peeled and minced
1yellow onion, chopped
1Tablespoonbrown sugar
1/3cupcream or half and half (or coconut milk)
Rind of Parmesan cheese (skip if you are dairy free)
2teaspoonsHerbs de Provence
¼ - ½tspcayenne pepper, depending on how much of a kick you want
Sea salt and pepper to taste
4Tablespoonsbutter
½cupfreshly grated Parmesan cheese (for topping)
Packaged crispy onions
Olive oil
Instructions
Place sliced carrots, 2Tablespoons butter and 1 tablespoon olive oil in large stock pot and sauté on medium heat for 10 minutes.
Add chopped onions and another tablespoon olive oil and sauté for five more minutes. Vegetables should now be soft.
Add minced garlic, sugar, Herbs de Provence and tomatoes.
Cut the rind off a Parmesan wedge, place rind in center of soup mixture. The rind will not dissolve and will be removed later.
Cover and allow to simmer for 25 minutes.
Remove rind with a large spoon and discard.
Place tomato carrot mixture in blender or use a hand blender to blend till smooth. Depending on the size of your blender, you may need to divide to blend.
Place a screen colander over large bowl.
Using a soup ladle scoop three ladlefuls of soup into screen colander, then use the back of the ladle to push soup through the screen, straining out all the skin and seeds. Do not skip this step!
Discard the solids and repeat till all soup is strained. Return strained soup to pot, add cream, cayenne pepper and remaining butter, reheat.
Salt and pepper to taste.
To serve: pour into bowls and top with Parmesan and crispy onions (the onions are not gluten free)