Super Healthy Roasted Tomato Soup

This super healthy roasted tomato soup is the best tasting tomato soup I’ve ever had. And it freezes really well. There are a couple ingredients added to this soup that make it even healthier than regular homemade tomato soup.

Watch how easy this soup is to prepare:

This is vegetarian/vegan, besides being much better nutrition than packaged soup. Did you know that many times vegetable soups are made with chicken or beef stock. Always ask if you are eating soup in a restaurant!

Tomatoes, onion, garlic, red peppers, pumpkin seeds and basil all have health benefits. The lentils give it a boost of added protein you wouldn’t normally have. The lentils make this a much heartier and filling soup. Roasting the tomatoes deepens the flavor.

The riper the tomatoes are the better flavor. I know some areas have a hard time getting ripe tomatoes at different times of the year. Get whatever kind are the ripest. Romas are my favorite for cooking.

I rarely make anything strictly by the recipe, so I will give you my recipe and the link to the original recipe so you can compare and make your own substitutions.

The original recipe is here. I don’t make the avocado cream in the original recipe. I use chopped fresh avocado.

This is the recipe for super healthy roasted tomato soup with my substitutions:

Serves 6

INGREDIENTS

• 1.2kg (2.5lb) ripe Roma tomatoes
• 1 red  pepper
• 1 white onion
• 4 garlic cloves (don’t peel)
• 1 tbs olive oil
• 2 cups vegetable stock (my recipe)
• 2 cups water
• ¾ cup lentils (any color)
• 1 tbs balsamic vinegar
• sea salt and pepper

SPICY PEPITAS

• 1/3 cup pepitas (pumpkin seeds)
• 2 tsp chili powder or blackening spice
• 1 tbs olive oil

TO SERVE

• fresh chopped basil
• avocado chunks

METHOD

1. Pre-heat the oven to 200°C/390°F
2. Slice the tomatoes in half, peel and quarter the onion and quarter and deseed the red pepper.
3. Throw the tomatoes, onions and red pepper on a large cookie sheet along with the whole unpeeled garlic cloves.
4. Drizzle over a tablespoon or two of olive oil, balsamic vinegar and season with salt flakes and pepper. Place in the pre-heated oven for 20 minutes until tomatoes are soft and juices running.
5. Meanwhile, you can prepare the spicy pepitas by combining all the ingredients in a small bowl. Heat a small frying pan over a medium/low heat. Add the pepita mixture and roast, tossing in the pan until the seeds begin to pop and the spices are fragrant. Remove from the pan and transfer to absorbent paper until you are ready to serve. Tip: these spicy pumpkin seeds are also great in salads or served over roasted vegetables. Store leftovers in the refrigerator.
6. Once the tomatoes, onions and red pepper are roasted remove from the oven. Pick out the whole garlic cloves and allow these to cool enough to handle. Transfer everything else from the cookie sheet, including all the juices into a large soup pot. Once the garlic is cool enough to handle, squeeze the soft roasted garlic from their skins straight into the same pot.
7. Add the stock, water, and lentils and bring to a simmer over a medium heat. Simmer, covered, for 25 minutes until lentils are nice and tender.
8. Using a stick blender or in batches in your blender or food processor, blend the soup until smooth. It should be a lovely thick and creamy soup consistency.
9. Return to the heat and warm through.
10. Serve in warm bowls sprinkled with the spicy pepitas and top with chopped basil leaves.

The spicy pumpkin seeds will keep for weeks in a sealed jar in the refrigerator.

*It’s so easy to make your own stock. Don’t use packaged stock with salt added when you can make your own with organic veggies.

When you make your diet a priority by feeding it nutritious foods you are on your way to having an ageless body. You can’t have an ageless lifestyle after 50 if you don’t take care of the body getting you through this life!

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Original recipe and photo of original recipe by Trudy Slabosz