Ingredients

  • 8 medium tomatoes
  • 1 cup tomato sauce
  • 1/2 cup olive oil
  • 2 cups diced onion
  • 1 cup diced celery
  • 1/2 cup diced green bell pepper
  • 1/4 cup minced garlic
  • 1/ cup diced carrot
  • 1 cup flour
  • 1 cup dry white wine
  • 3 quarts beef stock
  • 1 T chopped fresh basil
  • 1 T chopped fresh thyme
  • 1 T chopped fresh oregano
  • 1 cup heavy cream
  • 1 1/2 tsp salt
  • pinch ground white pepper
  • hot sauce
  • 8 basil leaves, cut into strips, for garnish

Method

  • Seed and coarsely chop 2 of the tomatoes. Set aside. Cut the remaining 6 tomatoes in half, remove cores and squeeze out seeds. In a 5 qt cash iron dutch oven, heat oil over medium low heat. Add onions, celery, bell peppers, garlic and carrots. Saute for 3 to 5 minutes, or until veggies are wilted. Sprinkle in flour, and whisk until a light brown roux is achieved. Add halved tomatoes, tomato sauce and wine. Pour in beef stock, a little at a time, until a soup like consistency is reached.
  • Bring to a low boil, then reduce to simmer. Stir in basil, thyme and oregano. Cook 30 minutes, adding stock as necessary to retain volume. Fold in cream, then season with salt, pepper and hot sauce to taste. In a food processor puree bisque in small batches until smooth. When ready to serve, garnish with reserved chopped tomatoes and fresh basil.