Prep time: 15 min
Cock time: 20 min
Difficult: medium
Yield: 4 servings

Ingredients

700g firm tomatoes
1 onion
1 clove garlic
50g unsalted butter
500 ml beef stock
Bicarbonate of soda
Salt and black pepper to taste
Caster sugar
150 ml
chopped basil and parsley to garnish

Directions

Skin tomatoes and chop them roughly. Peel and finely chop the onion and garlic.

Melt the butter in a heavy-based pan and fry the onion and garlic for 2-3 minutes until soft and transparent. Add half stock to the pan, together with the chopped tomatoes and a pinch of bicarbonate of soda. Bring the soup to the boil, then lower the heat and cover the pan with a lid. Simmer for 15 minutes.

Leave the soup to cool slightly before liquidising it. Pour it, through a sieve, back into the pan.

Re-heat the soup, adding more stock until it has the desired consistency. Season to taste with salt, freshly ground pepper and sugar. In a seperate pan, bring the cream to near boiling point and add it to the soup. Chop the basil or parsley and sprinkle over the soup just before serving.