This soup can be as spicy or as mild as you like, and is a great accompaniment to a light summer meal. It also is great in the fall as part of a hearty meal- it goes especially well with enchiladas.
Roasted Red Pepper Soup
1/4 cup olive oil
6 large Jimmy Nardello peppers,seeded and chopped (these are Italian frying peppers, red bell peppers can also be used)
1 large onion, chopped
6 garlic cloves, minced (I like to add extra garlic)
3 thyme sprigs (or 1/2 teaspoon dried)
5 guajillo or pasilla chilies**
3 cups chicken broth, or vegetable broth
1 cup heavy cream
3 tablespoons white wine vinegar, or lime juice (I prefer lime)
tabasco sauce, to taste
cayenne pepper, to taste
sour cream, for accompaniment
tortilla chips, for accompaniment
1. Preheat the oven to 250°. Heat the olive oil over medium heat in a 4 qt pot. Add sweet peppers, onion, garlic, and thyme. Sweat until onions are translucent, about 10 minutes.
2. Remove stems and seeds from dried chilies, toast them in the oven for about 10 minutes, or toast them carefully in a skillet just until fragrant and just starting to soften. Place in a bowl and just cover with boiling water, let stand until the are softened, about 10 minutes. Taste the water, if sweet and and tasty, use when pureeing the chilies. Otherwise, add softened chilies to a blender or a food processor with just enough chicken broth puree them into a thick paste.
3. Add the remaining chicken broth to the sweet pepper mixture, simmer for 15 minutes. Using a stick blender, puree until smooth. Alternately, puree in batches using a food processor or a blender. Strain if desired for a smoother texture.
4. Stir the chili puree, into the sweet pepper mixture. Add the cream, and vinegar, simmer for 5 minutes. Season to taste with salt, tabasco, and additional vinegar or lime juice.
5. Serve with sour cream and tortilla chips. (I don't actually do this because chips are starchy, thus we don't eat them, but I bet it's yummy)
*This is where I went wrong the first time I made this soup- I roasted a dozen habaneros and jalepenos, seeded them, and added them to the chili puree in step 2. I would advise against it. :)
This recipe was inspired by on a recipe from James Peterson, _Splendid Soups_
