A repost from 2016. A cold front in coming in on Monday. I decided what we’ll need for supper on Marica Cooks Wednesday will be soup & grilled cheese sandwiches. I landed on this most excellent cream of tomato. I’ll skip making real crème fraîche and instead just use the immersion blender to whip some of the heavy cream.

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Read the story of this most delicious soup here. And enjoy the “blurb” to this recipe from Saveur magazine:

As a nation, we didn’t know we loved tomato soup until someone condensed it and put it in a can. That’s when it became a steady presence on our tables, a fixture in our pantries and in our imaginations. (It’s no accident that Andy Warhol’s most famous soup can silkscreen is of tomato soup and not, say, vegetable beef.) To those of us who grew up loving the ready-made stuff, a recipe for homemade cream of tomato soup—a variation popularized in 1900, when Campbell’s started printing the recipe on labels—is nothing short of revelatory. Crushed tomatoes bring brightness and body; bacon, a smoky depth; and a generous finish of crème fraîche infuses that signature luxuriousness. It’s nuanced and vibrant in ways that the stuff out of a can just can’t be. It’s—if you’ll pardon the expression—m’m, m’m good.—Saveur 150 (October 2012)

CREAM OF TOMATO SOUP II
Serves 4-6

4 slices thick-cut bacon, chopped fine
2 Tbsp unsalted butter
4 cloves garlic, chopped fine
1 medium yellow onion, chopped fine
1 medium carrot, chopped fine
3 Tbsp tomato paste
1 Tbsp flour
4 C chicken stock (preferably homemade)
2 sprigs fresh thyme
1 bay leaf
15 oz can whole peeled tomatoes, “crushed by hand”
¼ C heavy cream
Salt (preferably kosher), black pepper (preferably freshly ground), to taste
Crème fraîche, croutons, finely chopped chives, for garnish

Heat bacon in a 4-quart saucepan over medium flame, and cook until fat renders and bacon is crisp, about 15 minutes. Add butter, increase flame to medium-high, add garlic, onion, and carrot, and cook until soft, stirring, about 10 minutes. Add tomato paste and cook until slightly caramelized, stirring, about 3 minute. Add flour, and cook, stirring until smooth, about 2 minutes. Add stock, thyme, bay leaf, and tomatoes, bring to a boil, reduce flame to medium-low, and cook until reduced slightly, stirring occasionally, about 30 minutes. Remove from flame, purée, return to saucepan, and stir in cream. Season with salt and pepper, divide soup evenly among serving bowls, dollop with crème fraîche, and sprinkle with croutons and chives.