Creamy Tomato Soup with Ravioli

This winter has been extremely cold so far!  I have been craving alllll the soups in hopes of adding a little warmth to our bellies.  Who doesn't love a good ol' tomato soup?  I let this cook away all day in my crock pot, but it would also be great cooked on the stove.  It could easily be made vegan by omitting the heavy cream and parmesan.  Speaking of parmesan, a parmesan rind is a great addition to this soup.  I keep all my rinds in the freezer and love to add them to any tomato based soup or stew.  I used a spinach and ricotta filled ravioli for this batch, but any ravioli or tortellini would be great!

Creamy Tomato Soup with Ravioli

Serves 4-6

Ingredients:

56-64 oz whole canned tomatoes

2 cups diced carrots

1 large onion, diced

1 head of garlic (6-8 cloves), peeled and roughly chopped

2 tsp basil

1/2 tsp black pepper

1 1/2 tsp kosher salt*

1 bay leaf

2 cups veggie broth

Parmesan rind (optional)
1 cup heavy cream

9-16 oz tortellini or ravioli
Grated parmesan for serving

Directions:

1.  Dump the tomatoes, carrots, onions, garlic, basil, salt, pepper, bay leaf, veggie broth, and parmesan rind into a 6 quart crock pot.  Cover and cook on low for 4-6 hours.

2.  Thirty minutes before serving, remove the bay leaf and parmesan rind.  Puree the soup either by using an immersion blender or, working in batches, carefully ladling the hot soup into a blender.  Once the soup is nice and smooth, stir in the heavy cream and pasta.   Cover, and allow to cook for an additional 20-30 minutes, until the pasta is cooked through.

3.  Serve, sprinkle with freshly grated parmesan, and enjoy!

~ Sara :)

*Depending on the sodium content of your tomatoes and veggie broth, you may need more or less salt.