Tomato Basil Coconut Bisque

My husband’s favorite soup is tomato so I decided to pull out some ingredients and play. I combined tons of fresh basil, tomato, coconut (instead of cream or milk), fresh veggies and spices. I pureed it into a nice thick and creamy bisque – yum! I must say, we were all pretty happy with the outcome. It is the perfect light and healthy fall meal anytime of the day. Dessert tonight will be pumpkin eggnog – check back later…

This is a very simple bisque to prepare and there are short cuts that you can take to make it even quicker. Instead of chopping 2 pounds of fresh tomatoes, you can buy already chopped organic canned tomatoes. Also, you can use chicken/vegetable broth or tomato soup broth instead of water which would add more flavors, requiring less spices and salt to be added. It is up to you but as I always say, be creative with whatever you have available in your kitchen.

I almost never make the same recipe twice – I vary it slightly every time. All you need is a good basic recipe to play with. Try yam or squash instead of carrots, leeks instead of celery, cilantro instead of basil, add in some fresh corn, etc…

Ingredients:

4 large carrots, chopped
1 medium onion, chopped
2 tsp Coconut Aminos, Nama Shoyu or Tamari
1 Tbsp coconut or olive oil
½ red bell pepper, chopped
1 stalk celery, chopped
3 fresh garlic cloves, minced
2 pounds fresh tomatoes chopped or 2 lbs canned and drained
1 cup marinara sauce of choice, optional
1 ½ cups fresh basil leaves, chopped
2 tsp raw honey or yacon syrup
1 ½ cups thick coconut milk
¼ tsp Celtic Sea Salt – more or less to taste
Black pepper to taste
Dashes of thyme, rosemary and oregano
2 Tbsp Nutritional yeast
2 cups water or chicken/vegetable/tomato soup broth
Add a few dashes of the 8-spice blend that I gave the recipe for yesterday if you have it around, (optional) – adds a unique and delicious flavor

Directions:

In a large soup pot, heat the braggs and oil over med-high heat.
Stir in the chopped onions, celery and bell peppers and sauté for about 5 minutes before adding the garlic, carrots and about ½ cup of water or broth – sauté another 5 minutes.
Add the tomatoes, coconut milk, basil, water or broth, salt, marinara sauce and remaining spices (wait to add the coconut oil and nutritional yeast until the very end before pureeing).
Let the soup come to a boil and cook on low-med heat for about ½ hour, allowing all of the flavors to melt together.
Pour all of the contents from the soup pan into a blender, along with 1 Tbsp coconut oil and the nutritional yeast. Blend on high for about 30 seconds until smooth and creamy!
Serve hot with some grated hard goat gouda on the top or how ever suits you best.

*Serves 4-5