Roasted Corn Soup with Red Pepper and Tomato

Good heavens. With the temperature dipping below 50 this morning, I was very tempted to reheat a bowl of this beautiful soup for breakfast.

But seriously.

Soup is my nirvana in the Fall and Winter time. There's nothing more comforting in the kitchen (during this season) than a welcoming bowl of warm & fresh ingredients; accompanied by a little crusty bread for dunking, of course. Not convinced I'm obsessed with soup? Here's some new soups I've tried (and fallen head-over-heels for) since February:

Wild Rice Chicken Soup

Southwestern Chicken Taco Soup
Chicken and Orzo Soup with Kale 

White Chicken Chili
Cherry Tomato Soup with Cheese Ravioli

Roasted Chicken and Sweet Corn Soup

Creamy Tomato and Basil Soup with Italian Sausage

Creamy Slow Cooker Tortellini Soup with Mushrooms and Spinach 

Slow Cooker Parmesan Tomato Basil Soup

This soup took a little more time than your usual toss-it-all-in-a-crock/soup-pot-and-call-it-good. The fresh vegetables require a little extra love, and believe me, every second was more than worth it. Before the soup simmers away, the flavors transcend to an all new beautiful high as you roast the crisp-fresh corn, richly delicious red peppers, and juicy tomatoes. I will be doing much more roasting with my vegetables before using them in a dish from now on. I can't even being to express what rustic depth it adds to the overall feel of the dish, and the extra-care you can taste in the meal as a whole.

Ryan loved this soup, but (surprise, surprise) said it needed some meat (you'd think he'd still have a meat hangover from this). He suggested lobster. Oh yes, dear husband, I'll just whip that right up and throw it in. :) I think this would go really well with some grilled cheese or any kind of crispy-warm panini.

I also added cilantro - a decision worth some serious high-fives all around.

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Roasted Corn Soup with Red Pepper and Tomato

Ingredients:
4 ripe, but firm, medium tomatoes
Raw kernels sliced from 6 ears fresh corn (about 3 cups)
2 red bell peppers
1 medium yellow onion, chopped
1 medium red onion, chopped
3 garlic cloves, minced
3 C low-sodium chicken broth
1 t chili powder
2 T salt
1 C heavy cream
1/4 C chopped cilantro, plus more for garnish
sliced avocado for garnish

Directions:
1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.
2. Put the tomatoes in a lightly greased baking dish, and roast until skins darken/tomatoes are caramelized - about 30 minutes. Remove from oven and cool. Keep oven on.
2. Spread corn in a single layer on a baking sheet. Roast until edges begin to turn golden brown - about 15 minutes. Meanwhile, when tomatoes have cooled, peel off the skins and discard. Set the flesh, with juices, back inside baking dish. Remove corn from the oven.
3. Use your gas burners to blacken skins on your red bell peppers (about 10 minutes), -or- (if you don't have burners) place the peppers under the broiler and broil, turning as needed, until charred and blistered on all sides - about 15 minutes. Transfer peppers carefully to a paper bag and close tightly. Let stand for 15 minutes, then remove peppers from bag. Remove and discard skins, core, and seeds.
4. In a big soup pot, combine tomatoes, peppers, cilantro, yellow and red onions, garlic, and roasted corn (reserving a handful of the roasted corn for garnish). Add chicken broth and bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce heat to medium-high and cool until vegetables are very tender - about 10 minutes.
5. Stir in chili powder and salt.
6. Using an immersion blender, blend the soup until smooth. If you don't have one, carefully blend the soup in a food processor or blender. Slowly drizzle in cream. Simmer for a couple minutes.
7. Serve into individual bowls and garnish with avocado slices, reserved roasted corn, and cilantro. Serve hot!

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Recipe adapted from: Williams-Sonoma, who were inspired by This is a Cookbook, by Max Sussman and Eli Sussman.