Chef Chloe Coscarelli's Spicy Tomato Soup

If you don't have it already, Chef Chloe Coscarelli's Vegan Italian Kitchen cookbook is a MUST HAVE. All of the recipes I've tried from the cookbook are stellar - and I have made this soup three times in the past two and a half weeks! I made it twice with canned tomatoes and once with frozen home-grown tomatoes. All three times, it was amazing! I used an immersion blender instead of a regular one, for easier clean-up. Once you try this recipe, you'll never buy canned tomato soup again. (If you don't like spicy food, just omit the crushed red pepper.)

Ingredients:

• 2 tablespoons olive oil


• 1 onion, roughly chopped


• 2 cloves garlic, minced


• 2 teaspoons sea salt


• 2 teaspoons Italian seasoning


• 1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper


• 1 28 oz. can fire-roasted tomatoes


• 3 cups vegetable broth


• 1 cup canned coconut milk


• 2 tablespoons brown sugar


• chopped fresh basil

Preparation:

1. In a large pot, heat the oil over medium heat and sauté the onion until soft.


2. Add the garlic, salt, Italian seasoning, and crushed red pepper.


3. Cook for 1-2 minutes, until fragrant.


4. Add the tomatoes and vegetable broth and bring to a boil.


5. Reduce the heat and use an immersion blender to puree the soup until smooth. (Be very careful!!)


6. Stir in the coconut milk and brown sugar, slowly bringing the temperature back up for serving.


7. Spoon into bowls and top with croutons and fresh chopped basil.


8. Enjoy!

You can use store-bought croutons, or you can easily make your own. To make the ones pictured above, I cut sesame sunflower bread slices (5 of them) into one-inch cubes, tossed them with olive oil, salt, pepper, garlic powder, and Italian seasoning, and baked them at 400 degrees until crispy. Delish!