Editor’s note: Chef Eli Haddix passed away in May 2021. Eli contributed several recipes to Evansville Living over the years, and we continue to share his work as a tribute to this beloved friend of the magazine.
If you’re anything like me, preparing dinner after a long day at work can be intimidating. It takes planning and you have to have the right ingredients. It also takes time; even with the right ingredients, being able to plan ahead enough to commit to a new recipe can be stressful. Enter the electric pressure cooker. Soups in 30 minutes. Bread in less than an hour. Pasta complete with sauce from scratch in 45 minutes and all in one pot. This appliance has completely changed the landscape of “30-minute meals.”
In this recipe, I take a basic tomato soup recipe and jazz it up just a bit. Starting with the normal sweet/savory foundation of mirepoix (carrots, onion, and celery) and adding the twist of roasting/caramelizing the tomatoes beforehand. This soup hits a home run when it comes to quick and easy preparation. Pairing this soup with a grilled cheese sandwich made from soda bread right out of your Instant Pot (my preferred brand of pressure cooker) makes for an easy night of comfort food.
Ingredients:
• 4 pounds ripe tomatoes (I prefer roma for the flavor, but any type will do)
• 1 medium onion, roughly chopped
• 2 stalks celery, chopped
• 2-3 carrots, peeled and cut in 1/4-inch slices
• 3-4 cloves minced garlic
• 2 tablespoons sugar
• Unsalted butter
• Low sodium chicken stock
• 1 cup heavy cream
Preheat oven to 425 F. Halve the tomatoes and place them on a baking sheet before drizzling them with olive oil and seasoning with salt and pepper. Roast for approximately 30 minutes while prepping the other veggies.
Set your cooker’s mode to sauté. Add a couple tablespoons of butter, and begin by sautéing the onions and celery until translucent. Add the carrots and garlic, sautéing for 3 or 4 more minutes. Change cooker mode to manual, set pressure to high. Add roasted tomatoes, sugar, and enough liquid to just cover the veggies. The liquid should be roughly half stock and half water. Set the cooker timer for 10 minutes. Once finished, use the quick-release option. Using an immersion blender, purée your soup until reaching the desired texture. Add the heavy cream and continue blending until fully combined.
I went to the trouble of adding a little bit of basil crema to the soup as a garnish, but it tastes delightful on its own. This soda bread is absolutely perfect for a crispy, melty grilled cheese when it is finished. Let the snow fall outside, you’re going to be perfectly comfy inside.
