Creamy Tomato-Balsamic Soup

Cooking the vegetables at the high temperature of 500° caramelizes their natural sugars and deepens their flavor; the liquid poured over them ensures they won't burn. Prepare the soup up to two days ahead; reheat over medium heat before serving.

Yield: 4 servings (serving size: about 1/2 cup)

Ingredients

• 1  cup  less-sodium beef broth, divided
• 1  tablespoon  brown sugar
• 3  tablespoons  balsamic vinegar
• 1  tablespoon  low-sodium soy sauce
• 1  cup  coarsely chopped onion
• 5  garlic cloves
• 2  (28-ounce) cans whole tomatoes, drained
• Cooking spray
• 3/4  cup  half-and-half
• Cracked black pepper (optional)

Preparation

Preheat oven to 500°.

Combine 1/2 cup of broth, sugar, vinegar, and soy sauce in a small bowl. Place onion, garlic, and tomatoes in a 13 x 9-inch baking pan coated with cooking spray. Pour broth mixture over tomato mixture. Bake at 500° for 50 minutes or until vegetables are lightly browned.

Place tomato mixture in a blender. Add remaining 1/2 cup broth and half-and-half, and process until smooth. Strain mixture through a sieve into a bowl; discard solids. Garnish with cracked black pepper, if desired.

Nutritional Information

Calories:

120 (35% from fat)

Fat:

4.7g (sat 3g,mono 1.5g,poly 0.1g)

Protein:

3.8g

Carbohydrate:

14.9g

Fiber:

1.7g

Cholesterol:

23mg

Iron:

1.7mg

Sodium:

452mg

Calcium:

120mg