Slow cooker Tomato Basil Parmesan Soup

If you know me, you know one thing I love is Tomato Basil Soup! I haven't found a great one to make, but Panera makes a mighty fine one for me to eat. They serve it with a warm whole wheat baguette and I'm in heaven. Oh, or Nordstrom's Cafe'. They have a delicious Tomato soup served with little cheese crostinis, but you have to ask for more than one. They are stingy with their crostini. Okay I'll try to snap out of it and get back to MY delicious recipe......I've been looking for a good tomato soup recipe and I believe I've found it. And who doesn't want a soup that cooks in the crock pot?? No watching and stirring and hoping it doesn't burn. Just dump it all in and come back in a few hours. Now that's my kind of soup! And it's tomato soup, my absolute fav!

Okay, let's see if this sounds yummy to you too....

Ingredients:

2 (14 oz) cans diced tomatoes, with juice (I used the cans with oregano and basil included)
1 cup finely diced celery
1 cup finely diced carrots
1 cup finely diced onions
1 tsp dried oregano or 1 T fresh oregano
1 T dried basil or 1/4 cup fresh basil
4 cups chicken broth (homemade if you have it, which of course I did) 1 bay leaf
½ cup flour
1 cup Parmesan cheese
½ cup butter
2 cups half and half, warmed (or skim milk if you’re trying to cut some calories. I split the difference and used one cup half and half and one cup skim milk)
1 tsp salt
¼ tsp black pepper

Makes about 2 quarts (about 8 servings)

1. Add tomatoes, celery, carrots, chicken broth, onions, oregano, basil, and bay leaf to a large slow cooker.

2. Cover and cook on LOW for 5-7 hours, until flavors are blended and vegetables are soft.

3. After veggies are soft enough, remove bay leave and emulsify with a hand blender. I just stuck mine in the crock pot and went to town. If you prefer your soup a little chunky, then skip this step, but I didn’t want my tomato soup to look like vegetable soup. And if you don’t have a hand blender, throw it in a blender or food processor until blended.

Before I blended up the veggies.

4. About 30 minutes before serving prepare a roux. Make a roux might sound difficult, but it was really quick and simple. Melt butter over low heat in a skillet and add flour. Stir constantly with a whisk for 5-7 minutes. Slowly stir in 1 cup hot soup. Add another 3 cups and stir until smooth. Add all back into the slow cooker. Stir and add the Parmesan cheese, warmed half and half, salt and pepper. Add additional basil and oregano if needed (the slow cooker does a number on spices and they get bland over time, so don’t be afraid to always season to taste at the end). I added another teaspoon of dried basil and also added about 10 chopped fresh basil leaves. Also, nice to garnish with fresh basil.

5. Cover and cook on LOW for another 30 minutes or so until ready to serve.

Garnish with fresh basil and enjoy! You know what would go well with this soup??? The garlic knots. Delish!