Tomato soup

I had a lot of tomatos in my refrigerator and right away, I knew what to make off it. Tomato soup of course and with the start of the cold season, what's better than some piping hot soup.

Have I ever mentioned how much I hate packaged soups. They taste horrid. I tried a few brands a few years ago and I have never bought a packet ever since. Some are so gummy from all the corn starch used. Some are too sweet from the abundance sugar added. The worst part is the addition  of Monosodium glutamate or  MSG, also known as the "infamous" Ajinomoto. Ugh! Makes me lose my appetite.

So, instead of cribbing about bad soup, why not make some good soup at home.

I use cashew paste as a substitute for corn starch to thicken my soup. The depth of tomato flavor in this soup is very refreshing.

I would have loved some croutons as a garnish on them as well. But, I had run out of bread :(

Ingredients:

• Butter – 2 tspns
• Oil- 1 tbspn
• Onion – 1medium
• Peppercorns –7-8
• Bay leaf – 1
• Cloves- 3
• Garlic – 4 large cloves
• Carrot – 1/4 of a medium sized carrot
• Cumin seeds – 1 tspn
• Chilli powder – 2 tspns
• Tomatoes – 8 large
• Water – 2 &1/2 cups
• Raw cashews - 5 (ground to a smooth paste)
• Sugar –  1 tspn ( I used brown sugar)
• Salt - to taste
• Cracked pepper – to taste
• Coriander leaves – to garnish
• Cream – 4 tspns (optional) 

Directions: 

• Heat 1 tspn butter and oil in pressure cooker pan. Add onions,  bay leaf, cloves, pepper corns and garlic. Saute till transparent . 
• Add cumin, carrots, chilli powder and salt. Add tomatoes and sauté for 2 mins. 
• Now add water and close pressure cooker . Cook for 3 whistles.
• Then remove the bay leaf and cloves and discard. Puree the rest of the mixture in a juicer and sieve.
• Now, on a low heat, add remaining 1 tspn butter in a  pan. Add the cashew paste and saute for a minute. (Cashew paste acts as a thickening agent)
•  Add the extracted tomato puree. Add sugar . Stir well. for a few mins. till the soup thickens.
• Add pepper  and salt to taste.
• Garnish with coriander leaves and cream.