When life gives you green tomatoes..... make soup

This will go down as the year of where none of us got our fill of tomatoes. It won't be true, because they're there, and they're good, but they were late. The rain, the cold weather, who knows what else, made it difficult to find good tomatoes, until very late in the season. The tomatoes that did ripen were good, but really, they didn't have that flavor or snap that said "tomato." To me, when tomatoes are ripened fully, and have had their share of sun, there is a musty, almost erotic scent to them, that is almost overpowering. Tomato leaves, too, have an aroma that is so strong and so singular, that they just remind me of "SUN" in the same way that a ripe peach does. Just holding one up to my nose is an experience to me that can be rather overpowering. Perhaps I am just too sensitive to smells, or too tied to the fact that, at least for me, the tomatoes, and the peaches, say "SUMMER," but that's the way it is. And it's MY BLOG, DAMN IT.

Okay, enough of Annalena's quirks. Let's get to the food. We were able to get good tomatoes during our very brief, warm summer, but it's cooling down now. And there are LOTS of underripe tomatoes on the vines. People pickle them, they fry them, but really, that doesn't use a whole lot of them. And picking them and letting them ripen in the windowsill, doesn't really work. They never have that summery taste. That's why I stopped growing herbs in our apartment. They didn't have the sunny flavor I expect of them. So, seeing all those green tomatoes in the market, I was gratified to find a recipe that actually used them in great quantities - especially after I got through with it.

Last week, the NY Times published a recipe for a green tomato soup. It was, to say the least, "lush." It had bacon in it. And brioche croutons. Now, Annalena will never deny anyone their rightful share of bacon. And brioche? PLEASE. Annalena can plow through four or five baby brioches before you can get the apricot jam out. But there is something about soup that makes me say "KEEP IT SIMPLE." I would never add the "stupid" to that, because it's just not right in the kitchen. But with this being a recipe I had never made before, I held them out as possibilities, "just in case."

Well, they weren't necessary. This soup is actually quite rich on its own, at least in my view. I think what happens is that the tomatoes puree down to a very rich texture which combines with the butter to give a really thick, pleasant feeling. Colorwise, I gotta be honest: this is going to remind you of split pea soup. Can't help that. But it is really good.

I upped the amount of tomatoes in the published recipe, and cut the liquid a bit. Also, the recipe calls for chicken stock, which you can use, no question about it. I wanted to share the soup with vegetarians, so I substituted a mixture of tomato water, and plain water. You can use tomato juice,or vegetable stock, if it's light, or really, I guess, just plain water. Try making it. I t hink you'll be pleased.

Now, let's cook. You need five pounds of green tomatoes. If you buy these ahead of time, break the rule about refrigerating tomatoes. In other words, refrigerate them. You don't want these to ripen. You will also need two onions, half a stick of butter, and - perhaps the key ingredient - a hefty teaspoon of whole coriander seeds. Put those seeds on a flat surface, and hit them gently but firmly with the side of a big knife to crack them. Chop the onions roughly, but small. And core the tomatoes and cut them into rough chunks. Finally , slice up four cloves of garlic.

Now, we're ready to cook, and it's gonna be easy. Melt the half stick of butter in a big soup pot, and add the onions, and the coriander. Cook until the onions just go translucent. When that happens, add the tomatoes. All of them . Add a good teaspoon of salt, and then add three cups of whatever liquid you choose. That liquid should just about come up to the top of the tomatoes. If it doesn't, add a little more. When the stuff comes to a simmer, lower the heat, cover the pot, and go away for twenty minutes. The tomatoes will collapse and get very soft.

After twenty minutes, if the tomatoes are not really soft, cook them some more. When they are so soft that toying with them breaks them up, they're ready. Taste the liquid for seasoning, and add more salt if you like. Pepper is nice too. So is hot sauce, if you care for it.

Let this all cool down, and then puree it in a blender, in batches. You're going to wind up with a generous two quarts of soup, in a beautiful green color, and when you taste it, you'll see what I mean about its richness.

If you want bacon, and/or brioche, well, go ahead. Fry up the bacon, and if you're using the brioche for croutons, you might want to fry them in the rendered bacon fat, and then use the two of them as garnishes.

But the first time around, why don't you try this "straight up?" I have a feeling you'll save the bacon for a BLT (with ripe tomatoes!), on the side, maybe on slices of brioche, with some homemade mayonnaise.

"soup and sandwich, soup and sandwich..." Y'all remember that one, don't ya?