The Pioneer Woman

Oh, I hope that you have heard of The Pioneer Woman . If you don't have her cookbook or have not been on her website please do not tell me. Quick! Go on her website or go buy her book and read it! Thanks to my sister-in-law Kerri, my mother-in-law, and my good friend Carrie Moore, they all introduced me to The Pioneer Woman aka Ree Drummond. Ree has outstanding meals and her humor is great. But, watch how much the recipe makes. She has four hungry children and her hard working cowboy husband. She cooks for an army! I like to cut her recipes in half.



Tomato Soup

Ree calls this Sherried Tomato Soup. But, I don't put Sherry in it so it is just Tomato Soup. Oh, and by the way, for all of you who are like me and won't cook with alcohol, did you know that recipes that call for white wine can be replaced with chicken broth? Usually, if it calls for a red wine, sherry, or whatever you don't have to replace with anything. The alcohol or liquid cooks away anyways.

I had to copy the picture of the soup from her site because I forgot to take pictures when I made the soup myself.

~ 15 minute prep and cooking - I'm not lying either!(And, I don't know what you could prepare ahead of time. Unless chopping the onions.)
~ Not so good for you but sure tastes great :)
~ Very affordable
~ serves 10? and makes for great leftovers (This is her only recipe that I don't cut the ingredients in half.)
~ young children will like unless they have sensitive stomachs (Heavy cream is just heavy and the amount of tomatoes produces a lot of acidity.)

Ingredients

1 medium white or yellow onion (You can buy them already chopped in the frozen vegetable section.)
6 tablespoons (3/4 stick) butter
Two 14.5 oz cans diced tomatoes
One 46oz bottle or can of tomato juice
3 to 6 tablespoons sugar (This helps cut back on the acidity.)
3 chicken bouillon cubes
freshly ground black pepper
1 1/2 cups heavy cream
1/4 cup chopped flat leaf parsley (This just adds color. I have done without this.)
1/4 cup chopped basil -Oh my! We are using our herbs from our garden again!

~Dice the onions Melt the butter in a large pot or dutch oven. Throw in onions and cook until translucent. Dump in the diced tomatoees and stir to combine. Add tomato juice. Add 3 to 6 tablespoons of sugar. (Start with 3, taste, and add more if needed. Or, you can do like me and just go ahead and add all 6 :)

~Next, add 3 chicken bouillon cubes. Add freshly ground pepper to taste. Stir to combine, then heat almost to a boil and then turn off the heat. - This will help to combine the flavors. Add in the 1 1/2 cups of heavy cream. Ree says "Are you man or a mouse?" Another words, can you handle the cream?

~Add chopped fresh leaf parsley. (optional) Add chopped fresh basil. (NOT optional!!! This really makes the soup.) Stir. Add more gound pepper. Stir. "Next, take a whiff of this heavenly delight. Then faint The flavor will knock your socks off" as quoted by Ree Drummond, The Pioneer Woman

Yum!