When I was a boy, I was never a big fan of soup. But as we age, so do our tastes. Now I can say that soup is one of my favorite things. I find myself pining for it in the summer months, and cherishing it throughout the fall and winter. In Michigan, it has been one of the coldest winters I can remember. We’ve had lots of snow and only a few days above freezing, which makes it absolutely perfect to start a weekly series on soup. So I give you round one of Souper Sunday!

For the first Souper Sunday, I’ll go with an awesome Roasted Tomato and Parmesan Soup. It takes a little while to do the roasting, but the payoff in flavor is definitely worth it. I borrowed the roasted tomato soup recipe from Kat over at A Good Appetite and modified it to add in the Parmesan and a little bit of a kick. Here’s how it’s done.

Ingredients:

• 2 lbs Roma tomatoes, halved and seeded
• 6 cloves of garlic, peeled
• 2 yellow onions, quartered
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• Salt and pepper to taste
• 2 tablespoons fresh basil, chopped
• 1 tablespoon fresh thyme, chopped
• 1 tablespoon fresh rosemary, chopped
• 1 cup low sodium chicken broth
• 1 cup red wine
• 1/2 cup half and half
• 2 tablespoons tomato paste
• 2 teaspoons lemon juice
• 3/4 cup grated Parmesan
• 3 tablespoons crushed red pepper

Preparation:
1. Preheat oven to 400 F. Halve your tomatoes and remove the seeds. You can do this easily with a spoon or a pairing knife.
2. Put the tomatoes, onions and garlic in a large baking pan. Coat with the olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Try to arrange the tomatoes so the cut sides are up.

3. Roast for 45 – 55 minutes until everything is soft and starting to brown. Allow to cool slightly.

4. Put the tomatoes, onions, garlic, fresh herbs and any liquid in the roasting pan into a food processor. Purée until smooth.

5. Put purée into a large soup pot and add remaining ingredients. Add cheese slowly in small batches. If you want a little kick like I did, add the three tablespoons of crushed red pepper. Allow to simmer for about 15 minutes before serving. Salt and pepper to taste.

Makes 4 big, tasty servings.