Hey Tomato People,Hey Tomato People,
With all this talk about summer heirloom tomatoes eaten simply drizzled with your favorite EVO, Modena Balsamic vinegar and sea salt or unmercifully thrown on the grill to make my signature salsa, there’s another dish that I like to make when heirlooms are at their best….’French Onion’ Tomato Bisque.
Now, you may be thinking to yourself as I know Tino is, with all this crazy summer heat and humidity, how can anyone be thinking about making soup? Well, it’s because this version speaks to the rhythm of a real summer night…not the postcard version, but the lived-in one that you know if you’re living near the coast like I do in San Juan Capistrano…no matter how hot it gets during the day…the lack of clouds means the heat doesn’t get trapped in at night, resulting in a beautiful chilliness as the sun gently drops into the Pacific.
In the dead heat of the day, heirloom tomatoes are at their loudest…sun-drunk, sweet and a little warm to the touch. Slowly caramelized French onion flavors don’t feel like they belong in July, but they do….just because summer isn’t just all about high noon. It’s also 9:00 or so at night on the patio, when the summer breezes remember how to move. It’s happening tonight as Tino and I sit outside, him with his nose in the air trying to search for just the right direction to catch the breeze face on and me enjoying a light summer supper soup delight.
This soup makes sense because it’s comforting without the heaviness of its namesake….the tomatoes keeping it floral yet still blanketed in the coveted glaze of caramelized cheese that make it so well loved.
No need to give you a recipe here…just toss them in olive oil with some onions and garlic, roast them for a bit, then blend them with some chicken or vegetable stock and fresh basil and season to taste. Pour into a crock, top with some crunchy bread and aged cheddar and broil until slightly melted. Garnish it with a fresh basil crown and some chives so you feel all ‘Chefy’ about it and enjoy.
Be brave….go for it…
David & Tino
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