Our indoor gardening in our basement over winter was an interesting experiment. I should say it was my husband’s experiment. I had very little to do with it. I did have plenty to do with what on Earth we were to do with 40 fresh tomatoes in the dead of winter though. Luckily, tomatoes are versatile! Unfortunately, growing them all in our “grow room” gave us an outrageous electric bill. If anyone gets suspicious of our grow lights and the DEA comes busting in, they will be sorely disappointed. Until they taste my soup!
Mini Meatball Tomato Soup
Tomato soup
- 14-20 medium size fresh tomatoes
- 2 tablespoon olive oil
- 2 tablespoon dried crushed oregano
- 1/4 cup dried basil
- Small diced onion
- Three cloves garlic crushed
- Optional tablespoon crushed red pepper for a bite
Remove the skins from your tomatoes. I use the method of blanching quickly in simmering water and plunging them into cold water, then removing skins by hand. If you like a smokey roasted flavor, you can skin them by cutting them in half and laying them flesh side down on a tray. Roast in the oven for 10 minutes at 400ºF. Skins should pinch right off. Set your skinned tomatoes aside.
Add your olive oil and diced onion to large pot and sautee until onion starts browning. Place skinned tomatoes in the pot and use an immersion blender to puree them for about 30 seconds. Add your garlic, oregano, and basil. Bring your soup up to a low simmer.
Meatballs
- 1 lb ground beef (Or Turkey, chicken, or choice)
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/2 teaspoon sea salt
- 1 teaspoon crushed red pepper
- 2 teaspoon dried onion flakes
- 2 eggs
- 2 tablespoon Dijon mustard
Mix it all together by hand. The egg holds it all together. Mold the meat mixture by hand into balls about 1/2 inch in diameter. Brown them in a frying pan on medium heat for about five minutes. It might take two batches if your frying pan is smaller. Set aside if you cooked them ahead of time. You can make these days or weeks in advance. They freeze and thaw well.
Add your cooked meatballs to the soup. Let it simmer for an hour or more. Remember to stir often to prevent scorching.
Add one cup of OPTIONAL pasta to the pot. (Shells or rotini work well for soup!) Continue simmering until pasta is cooked al dente. You might need to add a cup of water depending on how much moisture cooked off.
Salt to taste!
This dish is kind of like extra soupy, sloppy spaghetti depending on how thick your soup became. As for leftovers, it will continue to thicken in the fridge, so it will not be very soupy the next day if you added the pasta.
This one is a great base for making your own marinara, or if you need to use up those extra tomatoes from the garden. You can substitute three 28 ounce cans of diced tomatoes if you do not have fresh, or wish to reduce costs.
