Simple Tomato Basil Bisque

Last week, winter burst in with wind and rain and a deep chill. It was a most unwelcome surprise. I knew that this situation called for some tomato soup. There's something very therapeutic about combining ingredients in a big pot and bringing it to a simmer. What's not therapeutic is waiting hours to eat a hot meal after a long, cold day. Which is why this soup is perfect. In about 30 minutes (only about 10 of which was spent actually cooking), there were bowls of soup and grilled-cheese sandwiches on the table. My kind of comfort food.

Simple Tomato Basil Bisque

3 T. butter
1 medium onion, diced
1 stalk celery, diced
3 cloves garlic, minced
3 T. flour
4 c. chicken stock
2 (14.5-oz.) cans stewed tomatoes, or about 1.5 pounds fresh
2 T. tomato paste
1 t. sugar
2 bay leaves
1/3 c. cream or half and half
salt and pepper to taste

In a saucepan, melt the butter over medium heat. Add onion, celery, and garlic. Sauteé a few minutes.

Turn heat to low and stir in flour. Add stock, tomatoes, tomato paste, sugar, bay leaves, and basil. Bring to a boil over medium heat. Boil about 10 minutes, and then fish out the bay leaves.

In a blender, puree the soup thoroughly. Return to the saucepan. Stir in cream and season with salt and pepper. A drizzle of cream to garnish each bowl is especially fancy.