Super Healthy Tomato Soup!

This tomato soup is pretty awesome, and is 100% fat free, dairy free and sugar free (except for the naturally occurring sugar in the tomato itself). Great if you enjoy eating fresh and clean.

So here we go:
Let’s get everything we need together.

I used 11 medium/large sized tomatoes
A large handful of fresh basil
2-3 cloves of fresh garlic
Onion Powder
Salt
Pepper
Water

Large cookie sheet
Aluminum foil (I use the non-stick kind, it’s AMAZING)
Food processor
Saucepan
Strainer
Potato Smasher, or a large flat wooden spoon

Cut the tops off the tomatoes, then slice in half and place on cookie sheet with aluminum foil, skin side up. Place in oven on broil for about 5-10 minutes, or until the skins turn blistered and black and separate from the tomato.

While the tomatoes are roasting, finely dice the garlic and add it to the saucepan with about 2 tsp. of onion powder and ¼ C. water. Turn the heat up to medium and let the mixture simmer. If water runs low, just add a little more.

You can either wait until the tomatoes cool down to remove the skins, or you can use some metal tongs to peel them (which I do, because I’m the impatient type). After the skins are removed, begin pureeing them in the food processor until completely smooth. I do it in several batches because the tomatoes get chunky when there are too many in the processor.

After the tomatoes are pureed, pour them into a strainer that is over the saucepan and press down with the potato smasher to push the tomatoes through. Keep pressing until there is only seeds and a little bit of the thicker pulp left. Repeat with each batch of pureed tomatoes.

Once all the tomatoes are in the saucepan, start adding water until the soup is at a consistency that pleases you. I use a total of 2 C. water, in addition to the ¼ C. I use to saute the garlic. Dice up a hearty palmful of the fresh basil and toss it into the soup along with salt and pepper to taste.

Stir everything together, then reduce the heat to low and let simmer for a good ten minutes or more to infuse the flavors together.

At this point you can go ahead and serve up some soup, or you can add a little protein, which is what I do while on the hCG diet.

I take 100g of fat free chicken breast (I make sure to trim every last shred of fat), and dice into bite-sized pieces. I place them in a small, non-stick frying pan with a little bit of water and about 1 Tbsp. of apple cider vinegar and salt and pepper and cook thoroughly until there is no more pink in the meat. Toss into the soup and enjoy!