Tomatoes, local 4.5 Kg box

Preparations of tomato are endless: sun-dried, fried green, stew, sauce, paste, ketchup, juice, Bruschetta, veggie soup, pizza, salsa, salad.

They need to stay at room temperature, ideally in a single layer out of direct sunlight. And most importantly for keeping them fresher longer, store them stem side down while they finish ripening.

Tomato Soup

Ingredients:

1 tablespoon olive oil
1 carrot, diced
1 small onion, chopped
4 cloves garlic, minced
6 medium tomatoes, cored and diced
Pinch of sugar
20 basil leaves
2 cups chicken broth
Salt
Pepper

Instructions:

1. Heat the oil in a large soup pot. Add onion and carrot and saute, stirring often, until tender, 5-10 minutes. Stir in the garlic and a teaspoon of salt and cook for a minute more.
   
2. Add tomatoes, sugar, and basil leaves and cook, stirring often enough to keep the mixture from sticking to the bottom of the pan, until the tomatoes have reduced down by about a half, 20-30 minutes.
   
3. Add chicken broth, bring to a simmer, and cook covered on low heat for thirty minutes.
   
4. Puree in small batches in the blender or in the pot with an immersion blender. Return to pot, if necessary, season, and serve with basil as garnish.