Some of my favourite dishes have a strong tomato component — Tofu Parmigiana, Loaded Vegan Chili and Roasted Tomatoes, Rice & Bean Soup to name a few — but it occurred to me that I’ve never made a classic tomato soup before. In fact, the thought of tomato soup has always made me think of Clamato Juice so I think I’ve had an ‘aversion’ to it all these years….until tonight that is. This Creamy Tomato Soup recipe is delicious —  the Campari tomatoes lend sweetness to the soup while the cashews and parmesan cheese bring a savoury dimension to what could be an average ho-hum tomato soup.

You definately want to use fully ripened tomatoes to yield the best flavour. I used Campari tomatoes, which are regarded as some of the sweetest and most flavourful tomato varieties you can buy. I just learned recently that Campari tomatoes are deep red in colour, redder than most store-bought tomatoes, because they are grown hydroponically and ripened on the vine, which also eliminates the need for pesticides. Developing this recipe piqued my curiousity about the different varieties of tomatoes on the market and their characteristics that make them best suited for different types of dishes but I’ll leave that for another post 🙂

Since we are a family of bread addicts, I elected to make scones to complement this Creamy Tomato Soup. Inspired by this Buttermilk Scone Recipe — which I’ve been making since the kids were born — I decided to not only ‘veganize’ it but add a decadent dimension to  (cheese of course). Since we discovered Earth Island®/Follow Your Heart®Vegan Gourmet Shreds during our family trip to Seattle this year I won’t shy away from using shredded cheese in my recipes since it not only tastes pretty close to the real thing, but melts like the real thing too 😉. You can whip up a batch of these biscuits in under 20 minutes and they are simply delicious. Whether dipped in soup or eaten on their own I consider these scones one of the ‘”essentials” in our library of vegan recipes.

Enjoy~

Preparation

Prepare 1 batch of vegan Parmesan Cheese

Ingredients

• 1 large onion, halved (100g)
• 1 leek, coarsely chopped (5g)
• Canola oil (10g)
• Pinch of Himalayan pink salt
• Tomatoes, quartered (1.3 kg) [Note: You will blend the tomatoes in two batches (850g & 450g]
• 1 cup water
• 1 tsp vegetable bouillon powder
• 1 batch of parmesan cheese (Note: Reserve 2 Tbsp for garnish if desired)
• 1/4 cup soy milk
• 1 tsp vegetable bouillon powder

Instructions

• 1/Place onion and leek in your Thermomix mixing bowl. Chop 5 sec/Speed 7. Using a spatula, scrape down the sides of the bowl to collect the onion-leek mixture at the base of the bowl.
• 2/Add oil and a pinch of salt to the the TM bowl. Sauté 3 min/120C/Speed 1. Once again scrape down the sides of the mixing bowl.
• 3/Add batch one of tomatoes (850g) to the sautéed mixture. Blend 10 sec/Speed 5.
• 4/Add second batch of tomatoes (450g) to the TM bowl. Once again Blend 10 sec/Speed 5.
• 5/Add water, bouillon powder and parmesan cheese. Cook 3 min/75C/Speed 1.
• 6/Add soy milk and last teaspoon of bouillon powder. Blend 20 sec/Speed 6 to start and increasing to speed 8. Serve hot!

Scones
Preparation

• 1/Line a baking tray with parchment paper
• 2/Preheat oven to 425F 

Ingredients

• 1 cup buttermilk (1 cup soy milk + 1 Tbsp apple cider vinegar)
• 2 1/4 cups flour, white & unbleached
• 2 Tbsp cane sugar
• 2 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 cup cold vegan butter
• 1 cup vegan shredded cheese (I used mozzarella)

Instructions

• 1/Prepare buttermilk by pouring apple cider vinegar into a an empty measuring cup. Fill with soy milk and let stand for 5 minutes.
• 2/In a mixing bowl combine all dry ingredients (flour through salt). Dice cold butter and add to mixing bowl. Cut in the butter until the mixture has a coarse crumb texture.
• 3/Pour the buttermilk into the mixing bowl and combine with a fork. Don’t mix well — you want a ragged, not smooth, texture.
• 4/Add the shredded cheese to the mixture. Use your hands to combine – once again you want a ragged texture.
• 5/Transfer dough mixture to lightly floured surface. Using a 2-inch cutter, cut out rounds. Bake in oven until golden, about 12-15 minutes. Serve hot!

Product Recommendations

*Earth Island ®/Follow Your Heart ®Vegan Gourmet Shreds [Mozzarella]
*Village Farms sinfully sweet campari® tomatoes

Note: This recipe was made using a Thermomix appliance, however it can easily be adapted using similar food prep tools (e.g. mutli-function processor, immersion blender etc) or using a more traditional stovetop method.

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