Serves: 4
INGREDIENTS
1 kilo large, ripe tomatoes
Smoking mix
½ cup wood chips, soaked in water
branches of fresh woody herbs such as rosemary and thyme
Soup
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 onion, finely chopped
1 carrot, finely chopped
2 cloves garlic, crushed
sea salt and freshly ground pepper
1 tablespoon tomato paste
4 cups chicken stock
Garnish
100 grams soft goats’ or feta cheese
1 clove garlic, crushed
2 tablespoons cream
2 tablespoons chopped fresh basil
To serve
warm crusty bread rolls
METHOD
Smoking: Halve the tomatoes and season with salt and freshly ground pepper.
Drain the chips and place in the base of the smoker or foil-lined wok. Scatter over the herbs. Put the tomatoes on the rack, cut side up, and place over the chips. Heat the smoker, uncovered, over a moderate heat until the mixture starts to smoke. Cover tightly, reduce the heat to medium and smoke for 30 minutes. Turn off the heat and leave for 5 minutes before uncovering. Carefully transfer to a bowl, making sure you don’t spill the juices that are in the halved tomatoes.
Soup: Heat the oil in a saucepan and add the onion, carrot and garlic. Season. Cover and cook until very tender. Stir in the tomato paste and cook for 1 minute. Discard the tomato skins. Add the flesh and all the juices to the saucepan, stir then add the stock. Simmer gently for 30 minutes. Cool the soup a little then purée, in batches, until smooth. Tip back into the saucepan and reheat before serving.
Topping: Beat the goats’ cheese and garlic until soft and fold in the cream and basil. Season.
To serve: Ladle the soup into warm bowls and top with a dollop of the basil cream. Serve with warm crusty bread rolls.
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127
In Dream Escape, we journey from Japan and Morocco to Italy, India and beyond, sharing recipes inspired by travel, heritage and comfort. We celebrate the champions of the Outstanding Food Producer Awards, explore the stories and recipes of chefs shaped by their cultural roots, and warm up with everything from West African soups and slow-braised lamb to porchetta, butter chicken and beef noodle soup. Alongside destination menus, Scandinavian sweets and cosy pub classics, Chrisanne Terblanche shares her favourite street-side dining spots in Bangkok, while Yvonne Lorkin explores red wine varietals. This issue, we invite you to slow down, turn the pages and escape through food.