A DELICATELY TART CHILLED YELLOW TOMATO SOUP

We had a very yellow-hued dinner tonight.  There's a very short corn season here on Denman Island, so we eat it fresh-picked as often as we can while it lasts.  So, delicious sweet, ripe corn-on-the-cob was our "main course".  Our second course consisted of a couple of slices of fresh homemade crusty bread with olive tapenade, and the following light summer soup.  

We have one tomato plant in the garden which produces LOTS of quite small yellow cherry tomatoes.  They have a delicious tartness  which I thought would be good in a soup, so this is what I came up with.  It's a bit reminiscent of gazpacho, but needed no added acidity, due to the natural tartness of the tomatoes.  I added the yellow pepper to add more body.

It's a mild-flavored, delicate soup, but very satisfying (in fact, we felt extremely well-filled after our vegetable-based meal-- or "full-top" as the say in Quebec, according to my husband). I hope you will try it!

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BRYANNA’S CHILLED YELLOW TOMATO SOUP

Serves 4 to 6

2 medium onions, chopped

1 large yellow bell pepper, trimmed, seeded and chopped coarsely

2 cloves garlic, chopped

1 tablespoon olive oil

4 cups good vegan chicken-style broth (I like Better-Than-Bouillon No-Chicken Broth Paste)

4 cups small yellow cherry tomatoes, stemmed (If tomatoes are larger, halve them, or cut in large dice.)

1 tablespoon chopped fresh thyme leaves or 1 teaspoon dried thyme leaves

salt and freshly-ground black pepper to taste

Garnish:

chopped red tomatoes and fresh thyme leaves

(Other ideas: a dribble of good olive oil, homemade croutons, sweet or hot smoked paprika)

I sweat the onions, pepper pieces and garlic in the olive oil in the microwave oven in a covered microwave-proof casserole for about 7 minutes on 100% power, or until the vegetables are soft, but, if you prefer, do it in a heavy non-stick skillet over medium-high heat, stirring frequently.

Mix the softened vegetables in a blender with the broth, tomatoes and thyme.  Blend until the mixture is smooth. Taste for salt and pepper.

Chill the soup thoroughly before serving with garnish of your choice.

Enjoy!