Flutterby™! : Tomato Artichoke Soup 2006-01-15 22:34:26.12077+00

Tomato Artichoke Soup

2006-01-15 22:34:26.12077+00 by meuon 7 comments

Nancy and I have ended up at Rembrants Coffee/Chocolates in the Art District many Sunday's and have enjoyed their Tomato Artichoke Soup. We decided it was time to recreate it ourselves and have figured out a reasonable fascimile:

1 can artichoke hearts(in water)
1 can tomato soup
1 or 2 tomatoes
1 pint of half and half
1 half a stick of butter

Chop up the artichokes (into quarters/eighths)
Chop up the tomatoes (small pieces)
Put everything into a small pot and bring to a low boil while stirring. Add a smidgen of salt, paper, and spices to taste. I used just a little oregeno, parsely and thyme.. let simmer for a few minutes. Serve with bread or croutons.

Not as fancy as some of Dan and Charlene's dishes, but very yummy, especially on a cold winters day.

meuon: Thanks! Rembrandt's Tomato-Artichoke soup is one of the main reasons Asha and I go there. I'll have to play with making a vegan alternative though...

What would you use to replace all the fats in the half and half and butter? I'd be interested to know what works. Vegetarian (w/Eggs and Dairy) I can almost grok. Vegan is tough.

Soy products are a natural - but I'd even want to explore other options. I find that as I cut out animal fats, I begin to notice sensitivities to large amounts of vegetable fats - especially processed soy.

But yeah, I'd first try some EarthBalance in lieu of the butter. I've got some real butter left over from Xmas and plan to pick up some half and half for Asha today, so I'll give your recipe a shot tonight. Next time, I'll try to modify.

Ok... I tried the recipe last night. That's way too much butter. Asha's comment "why does it look like it's curdling?"

However, the oregano and thyme made it taste like pizza. Not bad, just different.

Recommendation (what I'll try next time): use 1/2 the half/half or 4oz of heavy cream, use 1 tbsp of butter. Put about 1/3 the soup in a blender and puree.

Sometimes "cream" soups mean you cream the ingredients, not add more cream. Also, heavy cream adds creaminess without wateriness.

Still, a bad start. Maybe I should get a job at Rembrandts in order to crib the recipe!

#Comment Re: made: 2006-01-18 15:05:53.721173+00 by: meuon [edit history]

My 'smidgen' must be a LOT smaller than yours.. :) My first batch did not use enough butter, second batch I used about half a stick (maybe a smidgen less than..) and that was better. At no point did mine get a 'curding' effect.. Hmm...

I'm a frustrating cook to most people, I don't measure anything. It's usually pretty good. Sometimes it's fantastic. And every once in a while.. I learn not to do that.

Last night one of my favorites: pan fried curried chicken nuggets. The batter: 1 egg, some curry poweder, some hot mustard powder, some peanut butter (creamy), some flour.. and the kicker: some Vietnamese chili-garlic sauce on the side. Yummy. Reasons to shop for stuff in the moma-son and popa-son oriental stores.. But the house smells a little of curry this morning. Or maybe it's me. :)