Gluten-Free Tomato Soup by milo6456

Source: http://glutenfreegoddess.blogspot.com/2008/04/sneaky-tomato-soup.html

Just pass this off as tomato soup. Or vegetable soup, if you don't like to lie out right- technically, it is a vegetable soup. And though it tastes like kicked up Campbell's, it's way better for you. Because, you know, it's got that secret ingredient. The c-word. (Did you know cabbage helps heal a troubled gut?) Um um good.

Ingredients

2 tablespoons olive oil 1 sweet onion, diced 3-4 cloves garlic, minced 1 large sweet potato, peeled and diced 1 small head green cabbage, cored, chopped 4 carrots, peeled, chopped Sea salt and fresh ground pepper, to taste 1 28-oz can Muir Glen Organic Crushed Tomatoes with Basil 2 14-oz cans Muir Glen Diced Tomatoes with Green Chiles- use plain tomatoes for a milder taste A quick splash of balsamic vinegar- or cider vinegar A pinch of organic sugar or dab of organic raw agave 1 tablespoon dried basil 1 teaspoon smoked or sweet paprika Fresh water, as needed

Instructions

Heat a soup pot over medium high heat and pour in the olive oil. Add the onions and stir to cook. When the onions have softened, add the garlic, sweet potato, cabbage and carrots. Season with sea salt and ground pepper. Stir and cook for ten minutes or so to soften a bit.

Don't worry, your house won't smell cabbage-ish .

Add the the crushed and diced tomatoes; add vinegar, pinch of sugar, dried basil and paprika; stir to combine. Add enough fresh water, as needed, to cover the vegetables; stir. Cover the pot and bring to a simmer; lower heat and cook on a steady simmer until all the vegetables are tender. This could take anywhere from 35 to 45 minutes, or so, depending upon the size of your dice, the pot, your altitude, the weather, the mood you're in. Just keep an eye on it.

When the veggies are soft, remove the pot from heat and blend with an immersion blender. For those without this nifty power tool- puree the soup in small batches in a blender (covered very tightly!) or food processor, till smooth. If you like your soup silky smooth blend it longer; for more texture, blend it briefly, to your texture preference.

Taste test. Does it need a little salt? Another pinch of sugar? A splash of lemon juice to brighten it? Does it need more liquid? You can add water, or kick it up with my new favorite- Hemp Dream plain hemp milk (it has those yummy Omegas that are now de rigueur).

Heat through gently till serving. Serve piping hot in warmed bowls.

Mucho tasty with my Gluten-Free Ryeless Rye Bread.